Direvo Industrial Biotechnology GmbH (Direvo), an expert in enzyme development and optimization from Cologne, has announced the granting of U.S. and European Patents covering novel cellulase enzymes.

Cellulase enzymes cleave plant based cellulose into small sugars and are used in numerous applications including production of pulp and paper, biofuels and synthesis of platform chemicals from renewable sources.

The granted patents, "POLYPEPTIDES HAVING CELLOBIOHYDROLASE II ACTIVITY", describe improved cellulase enzymes having cellobiohydrolase II activity (CBH II) and methods to produce these enzymes. The CBH II enzymes have higher specific activity and show significantly increased performance compared to available cellulase enzymes.

Direvo's CEO Jorg Riesmeier stated, "These granted patents will further strengthen our intellectual property portfolio protecting Direvo's cutting edge technologies, providing additional licensing opportunities and enhancing our competitive market position."

The invention arose from the unique and well-protected research and discovery platform BluServTM. The platform allows fast and target-orientated optimization of a vast variety of enzymes and microbial strains.

The effectiveness of this platform has been proven in several projects and resulted in the market launch of superior enzyme products.