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Content archived on 2024-06-18

Directed evolution and semi-rational engineering of plant cell wall-degrading enzymes

Objective

This proposal focuses on the development of new techniques and strategies for the directed evolution of enzymes useful for industrial (white) biotechnology, including the development of new genetic methodologies to improve the potential of variant libraries, as well as new screening tools to broaden the range of targets for directed evolution. Specifically, the proposed project will apply these new methodologies to plant cell-wall degrading enzymes, namely cellulases and hemicellulases, which are crucial biocatalysts for the production of second-generation lignocellulose-derived biofuels. The enzymes targeted in this proposal are phylogenetically-related, share the same fold, catalyze the same chemical transformation on a large number of structurally related substrates and thus provide good starting points to switch substrate specificities by directed evolution. In order to achieve these challenging objectives, the proposed project will combine new technical advances: on the one hand methodologies to construct gene libraries and stability compensation strategies, and on the other hand new screening approaches of unprecedented throughput based on compartmentalized screening in microdroplets that are processed in microfluidic devices.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

Topic(s)

Call for proposal

FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)

Coordinator

THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
EU contribution
€ 200 049,60
Address
TRINITY LANE THE OLD SCHOOLS
CB2 1TN CAMBRIDGE
United Kingdom
Region
East of England East Anglia Cambridgeshire CC
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost
No data