Nagendra Prasad Kurumbang, Ph.D.

Project: SYNTBIO - Construction of Bacterial Strain Degrading Anthropogenic Compound using Techniques of Enzyme Engineering and Synthetic Biology

Person in Charge: Doc. Mgr. Jiří Damborský, Dr.

Host institution:  Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University

Country of Origin: Nepal 

Country of scientific activity: South Korea

Project duration: 24 months

Scientific panel: Life sciences

Abstract:

Anthropogenically generated substrates introduced into the biosphere by humans since the Industrial Revolution are often recalcitrant and persist in the environment because microorganisms have not had sufficient time to evolve enzymes capable of catalyzing their conversion. 1,2,3-trichloropropane (TCP) is an anthropogenic compound, which can cause a serious health threat. The TCP is a very stable and recalcitrant chemical retaining over decades in ground water. To address this problem, enzymatic treatment is possible by developing or improving natural enzymes capable of its degradation. We will engineer haloalkane dehalogenase and other associated enzymes for efficient degradation of this chemical. A catabolic cassette will be constructed using optimized promoter and the engineered enzymes capable for efficient degradation of TCP. Then the catabolic cassette will be incorporated in a native and an engineered bacterial host so as to ease their direct application for treatment of ground water pollutants. Engineered host-constructs will be verified by monitoring its capacity to degrade TCP in a continuous flow bioreactor. The constructs will serve as the examples of the microorganisms constructed by protein engineering and synthetic biology, applicable in the cleanup of water contaminated by an anthropogenic compound.)