Team:Potsdam Bioware

From 2011.igem.org

Modification, Selection and Production of Cyclic Peptides for Therapy

One key task of biopharmaceuticals is the binding and blocking of deregulated proteins. Towards this goal, we mutate and select microviridins, which are tricyclic depsipeptides from cyanobacteria. They are small but stable due to their post-translational side-chain crosslinking. Microviridins have a high potential for therapy as they can block disease-relevant proteases. Yet, the possibilities of cyclic peptides are largely untapped since genetic systems for optimization are not well established. Thus, we developed synthetic systems for the mutation, selection and production of such peptides. We utilized the 6.5 kb microviridin (mdn) gene cluster cloned in E. coli plasmids, established random mutagenesis and generated focused libraries of microviridins. For selection against a panel of proteases, we are applying and testing phage display, and we are constructing a novel in-vivo selection device, which links protease blocking to antibiotic resistance. Our systems adhere to the BioBrick standards. [more]

Software

BioLog – The new allround talent in the lab for your smart phone! Our app combines several features frequently used in the lab. The software stores basic protocols in your pocket - easy, handy and ready to use… [more]

Team

  • Nicole Albrecht

    Nicole Albrecht

  • Katharina Berger

    Katharina Berger

  • Nadja Bjelopoljak

    Nadja Bjelopoljak

  • Nadine Boehmer

    Nadine Boehmer

  • Vanessa Boehmer

    Vanessa Boehmer

  • Jessica Eger

    Jessica Eger

  • Steffi Sempert

    Steffi Sempert

  • Niels Weisbach

    Niels Weisbach

  • Sebastian Hanke

    Sebastian Hanke

  • Sascha Ramm

    Sascha Ramm

  • Paul Kaufmann

    Paul Kaufmann

  • Stefan Wahlefeld

    Stefan Wahlefeld

  • Sandrina Heyde

    Sandrina Heyde

  • Sabine Meyer

    Sabine Meyer

  • Niklas Laasch

    Niklas Laasch

  • Oliver Zimmer

    Oliver Zimmer

  • Tobias Wenzel

    Tobias Wenzel

BioBricks

Our datapage displays our systems and BioBricks in a nutshell. [more]

Our BioBricks are top-down for the mdn gene cluster and botton-up for detection and selection. [more]

Safety & Ethics

We discussed safety issues and ethic controversies in seminars and polled all members of the German parliament for their opinion on synthetic biology. Learn more about German views. [more]

Labjournal

All the hours spent in the lab - thinking, laughing, sweating and hoping. Here is the tour guide through our lab work. We hope, you enjoy the trip. Please fasten your seat belt and mind the gap. [more]

Modeling

This year we focused on systems modeling in which the reaction kinetics of the in vivo selection are analyzed. Read more about the predictions we were able to derive from our model. [more]


primary contact: Kristian Müller, kristian@syntbio.net, http://www.syntbio.net