Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have shown for the first time that an enzyme can be tweaked to reduce lignin in plants. Their ...

Michael Kanellos is editor at large at CNET News.com, where he covers hardware, research and development, start-ups and the tech industry overseas. Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis ...

Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed the equivalent of GPS directions for future plant scientists to understand how plants adapt to the environment and to improve plants' ...

Researchers from China and the UK have discovered a protein complex that supports nutrient homeostasis and lignin polymerization in plants, thus suggesting a way to improve water and nutrient ...

Plant stems and leaves are tough, but breaking them down doesn’t have to be. By crippling a single protein, researchers can grow plants that have 36 percent less lignin, the sturdy plant-wall molecule ...

Despite dwindling reservoirs of crude oil and coal, there is still an increasing demand for the petroleum-based chemicals and materials produced from these fossil fuels. Today, modern society is ...

For the first time that an enzyme can be tweaked to reduce lignin in plants. Their technique could help lower the cost of converting biomass into carbon-neutral fuels to power your car and other ...