Termites in the gas tank

Termites are a model examples of bug bioreactors, capable of breaking down wood and turning it into fuel. Scientists are now trying, with some difficulty, to replicate that process.

The Boston Globe reports that several mainstream journals have published termite-related studies in the past year. 

A Japanese report in November pointed to a bacteria that lives within a microorganism that lives within the termite's gut as the key to unlocking the termite's potential contribution to alternative fuels.

A study last year by researchers including Jared Leadbetter of the California Institute of Technology found 1,000 termite-gut bacteria genes involved in breaking down wood. A new study published in Science explores the symbiosis of bacteria in one of the most active termite species.

"You have species living within species, living within species. So we better embrace the fact this is going to have a complex answer," Leadbetter told the Globe.

The microorganism, called P. grassi, breaks down cellulose in wood. A bacteria living inside the P. grassi provides nitrogen, which is necessary for the microorganism to survive. 

Hadley, Mass.-based Qteros, known until recently as SunEthanol, has based its business around a microbe discovered in soil in Massachusetts that can convert plant matter directly into ethanol. The company is now seeking ways to speed up the process by preparing the raw materials for microbe digestion (see Qteros claims 15-fold improvements in cellulosic ethanol yield).

San Diego-based Verenium (Nasdaq: VRNM) is studying termites among many microbiological alternatives to produce fuel. 

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