Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

United States of America, As Represented by the Secretary of Agriculture

Fachuang Lu

John Ralph

Steven D Karlen

John H Grabber

Ronald D Hatfield

Dharshana Padmakshan

Jeff Scott Piotrowski

Mehdi Kabbage

Robert Chase Landick

A method of completely dissolving lignocellulosic biomass. The method includes the steps of dissolving a sample of biomass in an aqueous solution of strong acid and an amine-thiol to yield a first solution. A method for measuring lignin concentration in biomass via absorbance of the first solution at a wavelength of about 283 nm by comparing the measured absorbance to a standard curve of absorbance values made from solutions of known lignin concentration.

Method to solubilize biomass under mild conditions

Antimicrobial diferulates, compositions containing same, and uses of same for inhibiting growth of microorganisms. The antimicrobial diferulates can be used alone or in combination with other antimicrobial agents to inhibit growth of microorganisms such as fungi, oomycetes, and other microorganisms having a glucan-containing cell wall. The antimicrobial diferulates can be included in pharmaceutical compositions for treatment of animals or included in agricultural compositions for treatment of plants, crops, and soils.

Antimicrobial ferulic acid derivatives and uses thereof

Methods of detecting and, optionally, determining a level of incorporation of monolignol ester conjugates into lignin. The methods include derivatizing lignin to acylate at least a portion of free phenolic and aliphatic hydroxyls and to halogenate at least a portion of benzylic alcohols present in the lignin to yield derivatized lignin, treating the derivatized lignin with a reducing agent to cleave at least a portion of the derivatized lignin to yield lignin cleavage products, acetylating at least a portion of free hydroxyl groups in the lignin cleavage products with a labeled acetylation agent to yield labeled lignin fragments, and detecting the labeled lignin fragments.

Methods for detecting and determining levels of monolignol ester conjugates incorporated into lignin and compounds relating thereto

Described is a method of detecting and/or determining levels of incorporation of monolignol ferulate conjugate esters into lignin by derivatizing the lignin, reductively cleaving the lignin, labeling the cleavage products, and then detecting cleavage products derived from monolignol ester conjugates via differential attachment of the label.

Method for detecting and determining levels of monolignol ester conjugates incorporated into lignin and compounds relating thereto

Described is an isolated lignified plant cell wall including lignin, wherein the lignin includes a ferulate residue incorporated therein, such as from coniferyl ferulate and/or sinapyl ferulate. Also described is a method to make the isolated lignified plant cell wall, and the lignin produced by the method.

Growing community of inventors

Madison, WI, United States of America

Fachuang Lu