Investigation on the ultrafine structure of wood cell wall for establishment of biorefinery technology of woody biomass

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23248025
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Wood science
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: SAMEJIMA Masahiro 東京大学, 農学生命科学研究科, 教授 (30162530)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): KIMURA Satoshi 東京大学, 大学院農学生命科学研究科, 助教 (00420224) ; WADA Masahisa 京都大学, 大学院農学研究科, 准教授 (40270897) ; AKIYAMA Takuya 東京大学, 大学院農学生命科学研究科, 助教 (50553723) ; IGARASHI Kiyohiko 東京大学, 大学院農学生命科学研究科, 准教授 (80345181)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): FUKUSHIMA Kazuhiko 名古屋大学, 大学院生命農学研究科, 教授 (80222256)
• Project Period (FY): 2011-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 酵素 / バイオマス / 木質科学 / 木材細胞壁 / セルロース / ヘミセルロース / リグニン / バイオリファイナリー

Outline of Final Research Achievements

A library of monoclonal xylanolytic and cellulolytic enzymes from the wood- decay fungi was prepared by the gene expression system of the yeast Pichia pastoris. An enzyme cocktail of several monoclonal xylanolytic enzymes without addition of any cellulolytic enzyme was used for selective saccharification of xylan in the ammonia-treated wood biomass from Betula platyphylla. After 24 hrs of incubation, 70％ of xylan in the biomass was degraded to xylose. Addition of monoclonal beta-glucosidase and endoglucanase in the reaction mixture was partially effective to degrade only 10 % of the remaining xylan in the biomass. Finally, two cellobiohydrolases were added to degrade crystalline cellulose. Surprisingly, the last 20 % of xylan in the biomass decomposed to xylose in parallel with degradation of crystalline cellulose to glucose, suggesting that a part of xylan exsists in the the crystalline cellulose in the wood cell wall of B. platyphylla to form a novel complex structure.

Free Research Field

農学