[peppercorn (OP)]

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/ucla-researchers-engineer-bacteria-149726.aspx

"This new approach avoids the need for biomass deconstruction, either in the case of cellulosic biomass or algal biomass, which is a major economic barrier for biofuel production," said team leader James C. Liao, Chancellor's Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UCLA and associate director of the UCLA–Department of Energy Institute for Genomics and Proteomics. "Therefore, this is potentially much more efficient and less expensive than the current approach."

[Nizzle]

Looks promising.
If they now can further splice the Synecoccus elongatus to become more or less transparent, they'd reach even higher yields in 3D growth vessels due to increased light penetration through the colony.

Side note: I wonder how they'll call the bacterium, since after all that splicing, it's not a Synecoccus elongatus anymore...

As i said before: Biotechnology is the future []