"
Team:Kyoto
From 2011.igem.org
Contents |
Summary
We create new E.coli which hunt and eat insects. it is named Carnivorous E.coli. Carnivorous E.coli emits light when hungry, and insects come near it attracted by the light. Then, it secretes viscous material to catch the insects. The insects caught are solved by protease and chitinase that Carnivorous E.coli secretes also. So, Carnivorous E.coli can hunt!
Hunger
It is a burden for the E.coli to emit light. This can be reduced by using nitrogen regulatory proteins, NtrB and NtrC, which activate a certain promoter under the condition that supply of nitrogen is not enough.
Luminescence
There are many ways to attract bugs, for instance using pheromone, but it is difficult for E.coli to synthesize complex compounds like pheromone. Carnivorous E.coli emits light and attracts bugs like glowworms by using Bioluciferase from 2010 Cambridge.
Digestion
In this part, we aimed to create E.coli which digest bugs and survive under the nitrogen-poor condition. So, we decided to use SAM-P20 and ChiA genes, which encode protease and chitinase. In order to measure the activity of each enzyme correctly, we examined assay methods first.
