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Team:UANL Mty-Mexico/Project/Applications
From 2011.igem.org
Our project's main objective consists on design a genetic circuit which works better in comparison of those that actualy exists. To reach this objective, we focus on two features:
- The design of a circuit which is liable to produce a large amount of outputs with a minimum use of inputs.
- The use of a circuit activation and inhibition in a noninvasive manner.
From the first feature, achieved by the use of switchs and logic gates, we pretend stablish bases for a cell to be able to interpret a combination of complex circuits in a future, and develop a complex code that allows us transmit to a cell what we want it to do.
On the second feature, we focus on the use of light as the easiest way to transmit a code. We consider light as the best option because it is noninvasive to the cell, is easy to use and of great savings.
We hope our contributions to be useful , not only in research area, but also in indutrial development and comercial aplications.With the right approach, our project can cause a significant impact both nationally and internationally, considering that the region where we live is one of the most important cities in industry and commerce of the country, focused, among other things, in the brewing industry, alcoholic beverages production, dairy manufacturing and biofuels development.
In those industries, product quality depends on the particular characteristics of an organism. Could you imagine how it may affect the production process the ability to control the desired features in the appropriate moment? In this way, our project could help to improve industrial processes, through improving quality, time and costs of the process.
We would like to mention some examples in wich we could apply our project:
Brewing IndustryFor the elaboration of beer, organisms that carry out the fermentation process are very important. Fermenting organisms have great variability: they possess genes that give different flavors to beer. Therefore, depending of type of beer and type of bioreactor, it will be important to choose the appropriate strain. On the other hand, there are a great number of genes that are implicated in some interesting properties that need to be expressed in a specific point in the whole process and in an accurate time .
Applying our project to this area, we could design a more efficient strain, the one we could control through light waves for obtain the desired product, depending of kind of drink and specific properties according to production process. This will positively affect the elaboration process of the products and process costs.By example, some features that could be controlled are: Fermentation process at different temperature ranges, the capability of carry out fermentation process in the bottom (bottom fermenting) or in the top (top fermenting) of the bioreactor, or the ability of the fermenting organisms used in top fermenting to precipitate once the fermenting process has been completed.
Moreover, it could be possible to control the level of glycolytic enzymes through the process and, by this way, increase rate of ethanol production and, finally, controlling levels of distinct esters that depending of the combination of their concentrations confer flavor to beer.
Biofuels ApplicationCurrently one of the issues of greatest impact is the fossil fuel depletion, it has forced to seek alternatives for the production of fuels that are economical, easy to produce and environmentally friendly.
In recent years there has been a strong focus on biofuels, but because it is a new concept has not been effective production and does not take advantage of biomass as a whole, because its content is very variable. Today four generation biofuels offer a great hope, because modified organism capable to hydrolyze the vast majority of polysaccharides present in biomass.
Applying our project to this area, we could build a microorganism capable of making the biofuel production process based on the amount on polysaccharides present in biomass, and to control the enzymes levels that are needed in greater numbers by wavelength of light, and thus increase the amount of ethanol and increasing the cost-benefit of the process that in a future can be substantial to go by slowly beside the use of fossil fuels.
The dairy industry has a big impact worldwide, because their products are essential in human nutrition. The yogurt and cheese production is carried out by lactic acid fermentation in which the use of microorganism in the production process is of paramount importance.
Applying our project in this area we could to control the lactic fermentation process to carry out more effectively, we could control the addition of substances and enzymes that currently must be added manually to the process by means of fermenting microorganism, vitamins, natural preservatives or lactase for lactose-free products, between endless of attachments depending on the desired product.
