Discovery May Lower Cost of Algae Biofuel

The Daily Californian
By Cristian Macavei
Contributing Writer
Thursday, December 3, 2009

Recent Finding Could Help Algae Grow More Efficiently, Making Cost Of Biofuel More Viable

UC Berkeley researchers now have a better understanding of algae, which may have implications for making biofuels more economically feasible.

In a study published in the journal Nature Nov. 26, the researchers determined the role that a certain protein plays in helping reduce the damage done to a cell by excess light. The protein helps protect the photosynthesis mechanism of the algae and can be used to make algae more productive as a biofuel source.

"What we're investigating is this mechanism that basically all photosynthetic organisms have (in order) to get rid of excess light energy," said Krishna Niyogi, a professor of plant and microbial biology at UC Berkeley and one of the leading researchers in the study.

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