Biomass/Bioenergy Research offers tremendous opportunities to address a pressing need of less dependency on petroleum based fuels and products. Researchers at Prairie View A & M University’s Cooperative Agricultural Research Center have been engaged in a number of genomics-based research projects related to biomass enhancement in plants that have regional specific adaptation to differential soil and climatic conditions. The enzyme technique, glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH), has been successfully used to regulate plant growth and yield in response to ambient abiotic stresses. The results of this work is being expanded to bioenergy feedstock crops (switch grass and hibiscus), crops known to thrive in marginal and salient soils and climatic conditions. This work promises to provide opportunities for limited resource producers or those with marginal land and/or limited acreage to engage in producing crops for bioenergy conversion.

More recent work has been undertaken which seeks to improve fundamental genomics understanding of the regulation of lignocellulosic accumulation that will lead to the development of models for low agronomic input but high yielding feedstock production systems. Further research is needed and will be undertaken to provide insights into a better understanding of the role of enzymes and microorganisms in breaking cellulose down into sugars which allow fermentation. Prairie View A & M University is committed to bring key participants in the national effort to provide scientific solutions and new processes for alternative energy resources from biomass and plant feedstocks.