Cyanobacteria are a promising source of biofuels. They have higher growth rates and greater solar energy capture efficiency than multi-cellular plants. Traditional downstream recovery of the cell membrane lipids from cyanobacteria, however, typically requires cell lysis followed by solvent extraction. This can account for 70-80% of the cost of biofuel...

Photosynthetic bacteria potentially provide a source of lipids that is relatively easy to harvest and convert into biofuels. To increase the efficiency of this system it would be beneficial to use a bacterial strain that produces lipids that are readily converted to biofuels, such as neutral lipids. Hence, there is a need for a photosynthesizing...

The development of sustainable biofuels has gained significant support because of the prospect of global climate change, energy shortages, and petroleum supply constraints. Microalgae and cyanobacteria are efficient at converting solar energy into fuels; however, their potential biofuel productivity depends on their biomass. It would be a significant...

Cheap renewable energy is a major goal of many countries. Although wind, solar, and hydro power are supplements to the power grid, they cannot be efficiently converted into the liquid biofuels needed for cars, ships, and planes. In contrast, photosynthetic microbes are not only the most efficient organisms for solar energy conversion, but they have...

Through advances in molecular biology, many bacteria have been genetically engineered to become essentially bioreactors, producing numerous valuable products, such as proteins, chemicals, drugs, and fuels. Most of the products produced typically accumulate inside the bacterial cells. This necessitates degradation of the peptidoglycan layer of the...