Jatropha-curcas: R&D project

Business focus

Biovale Energia

Agronomy, Science

Sustainable plantation, social inclusion for Oils Supply Programme Collection of accessions Germoplasm bank FMA for productivity and plant health

Industry

Jatropha planting to crude oil Planting, maintenance and harvesting Expelling, preprocessing and logistics Crude oil sales

Jatropha detoxification process

Fungi production

R&D goals and stakeholders

To set up a mycorrhizal germplasm reservoir of genetic diversity of mycorrhizal fungi of jatropha-curcas with high oil yielding for biodiesel production and the elimination of the toxicity of the meal]waste for animal feed

Executing organization :
BIOVALE ENERGIA an emerging biodiesel company based in the Minas Gerais in partnership with various stakeholders in the oil production chain

Co-executing organizations:
Federal University of Viosa DMB/BIOAGRO, ranked as the best university of Minas Gerais State and 3rd in Brazil SECTES Minas Gerais State Science and Technology Secretariat EPAMIG EMPRESA DE PESQUISA DE AGROPECURIA DE MINAS, national bench-mark in jatropha development CENTRO TECNOLGICO DE MINAS GERAIS - CETEC

New Technologies, New Gains

Biofuel production has become substantially more efficient over the last 25 years as Brazil and the United States have scaled up their industries. Such incremental gains are likely to continue for years to come.

However, the greatest potential for biofuels lies in the development of new technologies that will significantly expand the range of biomass feedstock, increase conversion efficiencies, and lower production costs.

Expected results
Documentation, preservation and characterization of J. curcas and mycorrhizal fungi germplasm
Development of micropropagated plants inoculated of ROC (Root Organ Culture) of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and their in vitro mass inoculum production Selection of jatropha genotypes with high oil yielding, envisaging the biodiesel production Toxicity elimination of the waste for animal feed Utilization and reclamation of industry created wastelands
The mycorrhizal technology offers biological means of assuring plant health in an economically profitable and ecologically friendly manner. The only known fungal system categorized as a biofertilizer, mycorrhizae provide plant roots with extended arms that help them tap soil nutrients that are otherwise beyond their reach. This means greater availability of other, enriching soil, increasing health, and decreasing dependence on chemical fertilizers.

Documentation, preservation and characterization of J. curcas and mycorrhizal fungi germplasm

It exists a wide diversity within the AM fungi which form association with the roots of almost 80% plant species and enhance mineral nutrient acquisition and water uptake, as well as increase tolerance towards different environmental stresses conditions. To conserve and exploit their diversity, BioVale Project contemplates to build J. curcas and mycorrhizal fungi culture depository houses and maintain cultures from different agro-ecological zones, in different areas of Brazil. The expected result is to trap isolate a variety of J. curcas and polysporal/monosporal cultures, setting up a J. curcas and mycorrhizal fungi germplasm collection of genetic diversity of agriculturally and industrially species for oil production .

More and earlier productivity

Jatropha has been identified as one the best plant alternative to offer clean fuel for achieving energy security. Jatropha seeds inoculated with in vitroraised mycorrhiza exhibits early fruition and flowers from the 7th month onwards as against a year with conventional clonal plantations and two years from seed raised plantations.
The mycorrhized Jatropha also exhibited 20%30% higher yields as compared to non-mycorrhizal plantations. The mycorrhized Jatropha will be widely tested covering several agro-climatic regions in Brazil to prove their adaptation in diverse soils.

Development of ROC of different AM fungi and their mass inoculum production under in vitro

The ROC (root organ culture) system is the most attractive and advanced cultivation methodology for AM (arbuscular mycorrhizal ) fungi: it uses rootinducing transfer-DNA-transformed roots of a host plant to develop the symbiosis on a specific medium in vitro which provides pure, viable, contaminationfree inoculum using reduced space. BioVale R&D Project aims at gaining expertise in ROC for in vitro culture and utilize mass production of AM fungi under in vitro.

Mass inoculum technology

Although the facts and figures of potential role of mycorrhizal association in enhanced nutritional and water needs of plants in laboratories, the major bottleneck for its widespread application to reach the end-users is its bulk production to cater the huge requirement. A known fact that culturing mycorrhizal fungi in laboratory conditions like other microbes was not possible due to its strict biotrophic nature of proliferation in the presence of suitable host has been the major reservation of its future contribution in agriculture. The mass inoculum technology envisages to exploit the genetically modified host roots using the Agrobacteriumum rhizogenes carrying Ri T-DNA plasmid. The technology offers the mass production of viable, healthy, genetically pure and high quality fungal propagules, without any pathogenic contamination under in vitro environment.

One of the main challenges that mankind will be facing during this century will be the necessity to drastically increase animal production levels and productivity in order to fulfill the feeding demands of a growing world population. J. curcas is a multipurpose tree of significant economic importance because of its several industrial and medical uses. Jatropha grows throughout most of the tropics. It survives on poor stony soils and is resistant to drought, reaches a height from 3 m to 8 m and can be used to reclaim land. The seed weighs approximately from 0.53 -0.86 g and its kernel contains 22 -27 % protein and 57 -63 % lipid indicating good nutritional value. The oil from these seeds can serve as fuel for diese! engines, indicating its potential as a renewable energy source . The potential impact is immense for countries with no indigenous fossil fuel or for regions remote from a source of supply. Furthermore, use of biodiescl is friendly to the environment. The seeds can be transported without deterioration and at low cost due to its high specific mass. However, the seed and oil have been found to be toxic to. Hence, its use as a food or feed source is presently limited.

Incresing aggregated value of the residue J. curcas The oil expell

Biological detoxification is another environmental sound approach for making J. curcas suitable for animal feeding. White-rot fungal basidiomycetes are well known for their ability to degrade a wide range of xenobiotics, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and synthetic dyes due to their enzymatic systems [7, 8]. Enzymatic complexes produced by white-rot fungi have also an enormous potential to be used in the treatment of fibrous feedstuffs improving its nutritive value through the sequential degradation of certain refractory cell wall components

End result

Treatment of J. curcas seed cake by solid-state incubation with white-rot fungi is able to promote the decrease of phorbol esters content to non-toxic levels, showing that this might be an alternative treatment with future potential. In fact, most of the physical and chemical treatments being proposed so far have not been able to definitively decrease the levels of these toxic compounds. The development of a biological approach to treat J. curcas seed cake is an environmentally sound and a more economical process, which might be advantageous since it can effectively decrease the level of toxic compounds.

de germoplasma pinho manso: -Banco de germoplasma:ex

vitro (no campo) e in vitro

- Caracterizao molecular

Montou-se o banco de germoplasma de pinho manso no campus de

Florestal e em Viosa, num total de 49 acessos. Foi ajustado protocolo para desinfestao, estabelecimento e proliferao de pinho manso in vitro. Este protocolo permitiu montar banco de germoplasma in vitro. Uso dos reguladores BAP e AIA e dos antioxidantes cido ctrico e cido ascrbico no meio de crescimento eficaz na induo de brotos e multiplicao permitindo formar banco de germoplasma in vitro do pinho manso Caracterizao molecular de 46 acessos, somente trs foram divergentes. Por possurem alto valor em distncia gentica, podem ser utilizados como genitores de um hbrido no programa de melhoramento

Produo de mudas de pinho manso O substrato PlantMax isolado ou misturado com areia constitui-se um substrato adequado para o desenvolvimento vegetativo das sementes e estacas; O banco de germoplasma do pinho-manso foi desenvolvido com sucesso tanto em Viosa MG quanto em Florestal-MG; Pinho-manso apresenta potencial para ser utilizado na micropropagao tanto de sementes quanto de estacas.

Diversidade de Fungos micorrzicos arbusculares (FMAs) em plantios de pinho manso Foram identificadas 19 espcies de FMAs na rizosfera de plantas de pinho manso. O gnero Glomus foi o mais abundante em nmero de espcies entre os FMAs na rizosfera de pinho manso nas reas estudadas. Plantas de pinho-manso ocorrendo em regies distantes, porm, em condies edafoclimticas semelhantes, possuem populaes de FMAs semelhantes prximas s razes. A utilizao em conjunto das metodologias morfolgica e molecular fornece informaes mais completas a respeito da diversidade de FMAs presentes na rizosfera das plantas em campo. Plantas de pinho manso apresentam elevada percentagem de colonizao micorrzica e relativa abundncia no nmero de esporos na rizosfera.

Pleurotus ostreatus tem alta capacidade de degrada ster de forbol, cido ftico e compostos ligninocelulsicos; P. ostreatus apresenta alta produtividade e eficincia biolgica de produo de cogumelos em substratos base da torta de pinho manso; Os cogumelos produzidos na torta de pinho manso apresentam teor de ster de forbol em nveis considerados no txicos, podendo ser indicado para o consumo, mas testes biolgicos devem ser efetuados para comprovar a inexistncia dos compostos txicos ou anti nutricionais.

Caractersticas nutricionais de resduo de pinho manso tratado com fungo da podrido branca O fungo da podrido branca aumentou os teores de nutrientes na torta de pinho manso. Apesar da torta de pinho manso ser txica, a partir dessas caractersticas nutricionais a mesma serve para serem adicionados como fonte de protena, carboidrato e energia.

Enzymatic complexes produced by white-rot fungi have also an enormous potential to be used in the treatment of fibrous feedstuffs improving its nutritive value through the sequential degradation of certain refractory cell wall components

Avaliao do desempenho dos animais alimentados com rao base de torta de pinho manso tratada digestibilidade in vivo

A torta destoxificada de pinho manso pode ser utilizada com segurana em at 20% da MS na dieta de caprinos em crescimento como alimento Alternativo

In vitro digestible organic matter (DOM), metabolizable energy (ME) and rumen degradable nitrogen