Figure 1. Consolidated bioprocessing of lignocellulosic biomass by cellulase displaying microbes. (A) The current steps involved in the industrial processing of plant biomass into ethanol using cellulase enzymes. Biomass degradation involves thermochemical pretreatment to expose its cellulose polymers, followed by exposure to purified cellulases to degrade cellulose into its component sugars. This is followed by a fermentation step in which yeast convert the sugars into ethanol. In principle, many other biocommodities can be produced from plant biomass using similar methods. (B) Steps in the consolidated bioprocessing (CBP) of biomass. CBP-enabling microbes would produce cellulase enzymes that degrade the cellulose and hemicellulose components of biomass, and then convert the resultant sugars into useful biocommodities. Microbes that naturally or recombinantly display cellulase enzymes are well suited for this process, as they are highly cellulolytic.