Nanomechanics and Raman Spectroscopy of in Situ Native Carbohydrate Storage Granules for Enhancing Starch Quality and Lignocellulosic Biomass Production.

Alternative energy strategies based on plant biomass-derived bioenergy and biofuels rely on understanding and optimization of plant structure, chemistry, and performance. Starch, a constitutive element of all green plants, is important to food, biofuels, and industrial applications. Models of carbohydrate storage granules are highly heterogeneous in representing morphology and structure, though a deeper understanding of the role of structure in functional behavior is emerging.

Applications of subsurface microscopy.

Exploring the interior of a cell is of tremendous importance in order to assess the effects of nanomaterials on biological systems. Outside of a controlled laboratory environment, nanomaterials will most likely not be conveniently labeled or tagged so that their translocation within a biological system cannot be easily identified and quantified. Ideally, the characterization of nanomaterials within a cell requires a nondestructive, label-free, and subsurface approach.