Popping the Cork on Biofuel Agriculture

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have identified a novel enzyme responsible for the formation of suberin -- the woody, waxy, cell-wall substance found in cork. While effective at keeping wine inside a bottle, suberin's most important function in plants is to control water and nutrient transportation and keep pathogens out. Adjusting the permeability of plant tissues by genetically manipulating the expression of this enzyme could lead to easier agricultural production of crops used for biofuels.

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