Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute For Renewable Fuels

Transcription

1 Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute For Renewable Fuels ANNUAL ACHIEVEMENT HIGHLIGHTS \ 2014 OUR MISSION Improve the Human Condition through Plant Science

2 43 PRESENTATIONS TO UNIVERSITIES, SYMPOSIA AND AUDIENCES ACROSS U.S., CANADA, CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA, EUROPE AND ASIA

3 SCIENTIFIC HIGHLIGHTS Scientists at the Institute conduct high-risk research with the potential to alter current paradigms for bioenergy crops. Technologies are developed to improve bioenergy grasses and the production of plant and algal-based oils with the ultimate goal of sustainable production at commercial scale. THE BELLWETHER PHENOTYPING TEAM INCLUDES 21 PEOPLE FROM 7 LABS AND 2 CORE FACILITIES A TYPICAL 4 WEEK EXPERIMENT CAPTURES 80,000 IMAGES USING 3 TYPES OF CAMERAS INNOVATION - The Bellwether Foundation Plant Phenotyping Facility was fully integrated into Institute research programs to accelerate discovery using automated, precision imaging technology. The new collaborative capabilities will be used to enhance the yield of bioenergy crops that use natural resources, like water, more efficiently. Developed imaging approaches (phenomics) to understand plant performance under environmental heat, drought and cold stresses. Developed open-source computer vision software for image analysis to mine information from millions of images. Initiated the Danforth Center Maker Team, a group of 45 scientists, staff and trainees who are spearheading the design and construction of low-cost instruments and software for phenotyping and other research needs. Secured several externally funded, collaborative research grants to improve bioenergy crops using high-throughput phenotyping. Performed large-scale experiments using several species to investigate the effects of drought on plant photosynthetic performance. DR. THOMAS BRUTNELL, Director of the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels, examining plants during a drought experiment on the Bellwether Plant Phenotyping Facility.

4 21 RESEARCH COLLABORATIONS WITH PARTNERS IN THE U.S., SOUTH AMERICA, EUROPE, AFRICA AND ASIA LICENSED 3 TECHNOLOGIES TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR FILED 5 BIOENERGY PATENT APPLICATIONS DISCOVERY AND TRANSLATION - The Institute explores fundamental science that underlies solar energy capture and conversion into oils, sugars and biomass, and seeks to translate those discoveries into marketable technologies. Initiated a NSF-funded research program involving 31 investigators from nine Missouri institutions to explore the impact of climate change on agriculture. Discovered master regulatory gene to enable the breeding of improved algal strains for biofuel feedstocks. Developed technology to measure root growth to gain insight into the impact of environmental conditions on root function. Completed the first set of field trials with enhanced Camelina sativa, an emerging oilseed crop for biodiesel production. Developed novel algorithms to understand biomass production. Optimized production of high-energy terpenes in Camelina seeds for industrial and jet fuel applications. Created an extensive, naturally occurring strain collection of Setaria viridis, a model grass for bioenergy feedstock development. 571 STUDENTS IN 12 SCHOOLS PARTICIPATED IN THE MUTANT MILLETS PROGRAM NEXT GENERATION SCIENTISTS - The Institute is committed to training collaborative, interdisciplinary teams to advance bioenergy research. Trained teachers from 10 area high schools to incorporate Mutant Millets, a plant-based science education program, into their curriculum. Launched the Mutant Millets website, with instructional resources and a portal to submit data collected by students. Trained 53 scientists from nine countries in Institute labs. Danforth Center bioenergy discoveries were published in 49 peer-reviewed articles (11 shown) Bates, P.D., et al. (2014). Fatty acid synthesis is inhibited by inefficient utilization of unusual fatty acids for glycerolipid assembly. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111, Geng, S., De Hoff, P., and Umen, J.G. (2014). Evolution of sexes from an ancestral mating-type specification pathway. PLoS Biology 12, e Goodenough, U., et al. (2014). The path to triacylglyceride obesity in the sta6 strain of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Eukaryot Cell 13, Gordon, S.P., et al. (2014). Genome diversity in Brachypodium distachyon: deep sequencing of highly diverse inbred lines. Plant Journal 79, Huang, P., et al. (2014). Population genetics of Setaria viridis, a new model system. Molecular Ecology 23, Li, M., Butka, E., and Wang, X. (2014). Comprehensive quantification of triacylglycerols in soybean seeds by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry with multiple neutral loss scans. Scientific Reports 4, Malik, M.R., et al. (2014). Production of high levels of poly-3- hydroxybutyrate in plastids of Camelina sativa seeds. Plant Biotechnology Journal. Raybould, A., Quemada, H., and Romeis, J. (2014). Introduction to ISBGMO12: biosafety research past, present and future. Transgenic Research 23, Roy Choudhury, S., Riesselman, A.J., and Pandey, S. (2014). Constitutive or seed-specific overexpression of Arabidopsis G-protein gamma subunit 3 (AGG3) results in increased seed and oil production and improved stress tolerance in Camelina sativa. Plant Biotechnology Journal 12, Wang, L., et al. (2014).Comparative analyses of C4 and C3 photosynthesis in developing leaves of maize and rice. Nature Biotechnology 32, Warnasooriya, S.N., and Brutnell, T.P. (2014). Enhancing the productivity of grasses under high-density planting by engineering light responses: From model systems to feedstocks. Journal of Experimental Botany 65,

5 2014 ACTIVE GRANTS AND CONTRACTS TITLE AGENCY START/END TOTAL GRANT Center for Advanced Biofuel Systems U.S. Dept.of Energy () Aug $14,420,920 National Alliance for Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts April 2010 Sept $31,069,307 Modulation of phytochrome signaling networks for improved biomass accumulation using a bioenergy crop model Aug Aug $967,563 Engineering C3 plants with carbon concentrating mechanisms for enhanced photosynthesis National Science Foundation (NSF) Aug Feb $338,517 A New Paradigm for Cell Size Control by the RB Tumor Suppressor National Institutes of Health Aug $1,228,310 Evolution of Sexually Dimorphic Germ Cells in Volvox carteri National Institutes of Health Sept June 2015 $1,235,774 Defining determinants and dynamics of cellulose microfibril biosynthesis, assembly and degradation Cornell University () Jan Nov $400,539 Center for Enhanced Camelina Oils -ARPA Jan Jan $7,078,897 GEPR: A System Approach to the Development and Function of C4 Photosynthesis NSF Feb Jan $2,247,871 Development of Setaria viridis as a C4 Model System Monsanto Aug $264,000 Biosciences Fellowship Life Sciences Research Foundation Aug $168,000 The structure function of the novel protein LCIB and related proteins with the CO2 concentrating mechanisms of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Iowa State University () Aug Aug $66,742 A systems-level analysis of drought and density response in the model C4 grass Setaria viridis Sept Aug $12,140,437 The MO Transect: Climate Plant Community Phylogeny and Genome Evolution of Andropogonea USDA Fellowship - Dissecting the Jasmonate Network in Setaria The Brachypodium ENCODE Project NSF NSF USDA-NIFA Aug July 2019 Mar June 2015 Sept Aug Sept Aug $2,847,803 $346,851 $148,876 $1,498,585 TOTAL $76,468,992

6 ENTERPRISE RENT-A-CAR INSTITUTE FOR RENEWABLE FUELS The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels is a research unit within the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, and was established in 2007 with a generous gift from the Taylor family. The mission of the Enterprise Institute is to develop and apply technologies to enhance the potential of oilseed crops, algae and bioenergy grasses as sources of sustainable bioenergy. 975 North Warson Road / St. Louis, Missouri Printed with solvent-free inks & emission-free coatings on recycled stock that utilized 30% post-consumer recovered fiber paper Donald Danforth Plant Science Center