Green Technology

Research partnership targets development of innovative enzymes for cellulosic biomass conversion into ethanol. Both companies benefit from the new arrangement. Enzymes will be a key technical differentiator for companies to gain a competitive advantage in the production of ethanol biofuels. Syngenta and Diversa are positioned to benefit from this commerical arrangement. Diversa has depth in enzyme research and Syngenta has the strength to commercialize enzymes in production facilities. ...

... "Syngenta and Diversa Corporation announced a new 10-year research and development partnership focused on the discovery and development of a range of novel enzymes to convert pre-treated cellulosic biomass economically to mixed sugars - a critical step in the process of biofuel production. The new agreement allows Diversa to independently develop and commercialize fermentation-based enzyme combinations from its proprietary platform. Syngenta will have exclusive access to enzymes from Diversa's platform to express in plants for enhanced cost-effective production. Converting biomass to biofuels requires breakthrough developments in three areas: chemical preparation of the cellulosic biomass (pre-treatment), conversion of pre-treated cellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars by combinations of enzymes (saccharification), and the development of novel micro-organisms to ferment the sugars to ethanol or other fuels (fermentation). Developing cost-effective enzyme systems is essential to economically converting biomass to biofuels. " ...

Via Syngenta: Syngenta and Diversa agree on new R&D partnership to discover enzymes for biofuels ...