Bioworks Foundation sees potential in biofuels

Memphis Bioworks Foundation on Wednesday unveiled a new facet of itself: agriculture.

Bioworks has been focused on human medicine and development of the UT-Baptist Research Park for six years, so agriculture has not been an area of focus until now. However, a 2004 Battelle study commissioned by Memphis Tomorrow identified agriculture as a biotech opportunity for the city.

Bioworks took the opportunity of another major agriculture announcement, nominally attaching itself to the 25 X '25 initiative that debuted Wednesday in Washington, D.C. 25 X '25 is a coalition of more than 400 organizations hoping to put some structure to the emerging biofuels industry. Their goal is to supply 25 percent of the nation's energy supply from renewable sources by 2025.

The short term supply is coming mainly from corn and soybeans, but the long-term goal is liquid fuel from cellulose. It would be a boon for farmers, who could add crops like switchgrass, hemp and kenaff on fallow ground.

"A lot of the biomedical research that's already happening here translates easily to biofuels," said Peter Nelson, a consultant to Bioworks. "We need the chemistry to convert cellulose into sugars that can be made into ethanol."

Another potential activity comes from genetics research at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. To achieve the goals, crops will have to produce much greater yields without depleting the soil. One of the most effective ways of doing that is through genetic engineering.