Chinese scientists at the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology have unveiled a game‑changing “in vitro biotransformation” (ivBT) system that turns methanol—sourced from industrial CO₂—directly into table sugar and starch. By harnessing specialized enzymes, the team achieves an impressive 86% conversion rate, bypassing traditional agriculture entirely.

This breakthrough builds on 2021 work from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, which first cracked low‑temperature CO₂‑to‑methanol conversion. Now, Tianjin’s researchers have taken the next step: feeding that methanol into their ivBT platform and watching it spit out sucrose and complex carbohydrates while using far less energy than growing and processing sugarcane.

Beyond sugar, the system can be tweaked to produce fructose, starch derivatives, and other sweet biomolecules—offering a sustainable, carbon‑neutral path to feed a world headed for 10 billion mouths by century’s end. More than just a lab curiosity, this enzyme‑powered factory could slot into existing chemical plants, capturing waste CO₂ and transforming it into edible calories. If scaled, ivBT might revolutionize food security, slash agricultural land use, and turn a greenhouse‑gas villain into tomorrow’s grocery store staple.

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Source: NDTV Offbeat

Credit: Abhinav Singh / NDTV

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