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De novo synthesis of a chloroplast genome in Nicotiana tabacum

Objective

Despite significant progress in chloroplast biotechnology the de novo synthesis of a chloroplast genome has
remained elusive. The development of strategies to design, assemble and transform artificial chloroplast genomes
would signify a step-change in the field of plant synthetic biology. Only recently, genome scale DNA synthesis
and sequencing has become routine, providing an ideal foundation to revisit the challenge of chloroplast genome
synthesis. I will join Ralph Bock, a world leader in chloroplast biotechnology, and combine the expertise of his
laboratory with my background in synthetic biology to generate the first Nicotiana tabacum plant with an artificial
chloroplast genome. I will base my strategy on creating and testing multiple different genome designs with varied
degrees of structural and genetic code alterations in respect to the parental genome to identify viable designs. I
will develop methods to assess those designs in parallel, permitting the rapid identification and fixing of
problematic regions in the synthetic genome. I will proceed to assemble the verified chloroplast genomes in a
hierarchical, parallelized manner from large pieces of synthetic DNA. Finally, I will characterize the phenotype of
the resulting plants, focusing on understanding the changes in transcription, translation and metabolism. The
methods developed in this work will provide insights into the design principles of organellar genomes, and provide
a platform to reinvent and remodel the genetic code of chloroplasts. This work will thereby establish strategies to
re-engineering complex cellular processes such as photosynthesis, or to design entirely new functions such as the
genetic isolation of synthetic DNA in plants.

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Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

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HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01

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Coordinator

MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 173 847,36
Address
HOFGARTENSTRASSE 8
80539 MUNCHEN
Germany

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Region
Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

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