Just as oil can be fractionated in a petrochemical refinery to produce a range of compounds, the sugars found in the cellulosic and hemicellulosic chains of plant biomass can also be recovered to construct various chemical blocks. The development of microbial strains capable of utilizing these renewable sugars and acting as efficient biocatalysts in fermentations forms the foundation for constructing biorefineries. We plan to employ metabolic and evolutionary engineering tools, multi-omics analysis, and systems biology to predict metabolic pathways and develop microbial strains to produce various chemical blocks. This will position Brazil at the forefront of renewable energy development. Our goal is to unravel the molecular bases involved in metabolism, the signaling network that regulates the production of these compounds, and the tolerance to groups of inhibitors present in hydrolysates from lignocellulosic materials.