Flipping the mattress: infinite polyurethane recycling by synthetic biology. Australia is covered in billions of tonnes of plastic and yet <10% is recycled today. Polyurethane (PU) is ubiquitous in our everyday lives, from lacquer coatings to elastane clothing to durable foam padding in car seats, cushions and mattresses. Currently, there are few avenues for PU recycling and much ends up in landfill e.g., a single mattress produces 15-20kg of PU foam waste. Luckily, biodegradation of PU can occu ....Flipping the mattress: infinite polyurethane recycling by synthetic biology. Australia is covered in billions of tonnes of plastic and yet <10% is recycled today. Polyurethane (PU) is ubiquitous in our everyday lives, from lacquer coatings to elastane clothing to durable foam padding in car seats, cushions and mattresses. Currently, there are few avenues for PU recycling and much ends up in landfill e.g., a single mattress produces 15-20kg of PU foam waste. Luckily, biodegradation of PU can occur naturally via various microbial means and from insects, like Galleria mellonella larvae. The overall aim of this research project is to understand plastic biodegradation and translate nature’s solutions into flexible and efficient synthetic enzyme technologies that can sustainably recycle commonly used PU foams. Read moreRead less
Remodelling encapsulin nanocages to help enhance plant carbon fixation. Nature has evolved mechanisms in microbial systems to improve photosynthetic efficiency by saturating the enzyme Rubisco with carbon dioxide. These carbon concentrating mechanisms are genetically complex, precluding successful introduction into crops. Our simpler approach is to use encapsulins, a new source of robust bacterial pore-containing nanocages made from a single gene. This project will optimise the development of sy ....Remodelling encapsulin nanocages to help enhance plant carbon fixation. Nature has evolved mechanisms in microbial systems to improve photosynthetic efficiency by saturating the enzyme Rubisco with carbon dioxide. These carbon concentrating mechanisms are genetically complex, precluding successful introduction into crops. Our simpler approach is to use encapsulins, a new source of robust bacterial pore-containing nanocages made from a single gene. This project will optimise the development of synthetic encapsulin-Rubisco carbon-fixing nanoreactors and transform them into leaf chloroplasts to test their impact on plant photosynthesis and growth. Our genetically simpler solution will aid ongoing global efforts to deliver overdue step change improvements in agricultural productivity.Read moreRead less
Biosynthesis and functions of two phytotoxins in Septoria nodorum blotch. This project aims to investigate how a fungal plant pathogen makes and uses small bioactive molecules to facilitate infection. It will characterise the function of the genes and enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of a light-activated phytotoxic molecule and a potential anti-plant defence molecule found in the pathogenic wheat fungus Parastagonospora nodorum, and investigate their contribution to disease development. Expe ....Biosynthesis and functions of two phytotoxins in Septoria nodorum blotch. This project aims to investigate how a fungal plant pathogen makes and uses small bioactive molecules to facilitate infection. It will characterise the function of the genes and enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of a light-activated phytotoxic molecule and a potential anti-plant defence molecule found in the pathogenic wheat fungus Parastagonospora nodorum, and investigate their contribution to disease development. Expected outcomes include better understanding of plant-microbe interactions, disease management strategies, technologies for identifying biosynthetic pathways in other fungi, and enzyme technology for synthesising molecules. This could lead to new herbicides, biopesticides and drugs.Read moreRead less
Fungal Ribosomally Synthesised and Post-translationally Modified Peptides. Fungi produce an array of molecules called secondary metabolites (SMs) that impact on everyday life (e.g. penicillin). This project aims to investigate a new class of fungal peptide SMs called RiPPs which are structurally unique from existing molecules and offer the exciting prospect of harbouring new and novel biological activities. This project expects to discover the mechanisms of RiPP synthesis and their biological ro ....Fungal Ribosomally Synthesised and Post-translationally Modified Peptides. Fungi produce an array of molecules called secondary metabolites (SMs) that impact on everyday life (e.g. penicillin). This project aims to investigate a new class of fungal peptide SMs called RiPPs which are structurally unique from existing molecules and offer the exciting prospect of harbouring new and novel biological activities. This project expects to discover the mechanisms of RiPP synthesis and their biological roles in plant pathogenic fungi, and uncover and engineer novel RiPPs with desired bioactivities. The expected outcome from this project will be a seminal advance in fungal SM biology which should provide significant benefits through the generation of exciting new lead molecules for the agricultural and medical industries.Read moreRead less
Design and Fabrication of Molecular Machines: the Nanomachines of the Future. Nanotechnology that incorporates the use of nanomachines and molecular machines is an exciting new area of translational research, with broad potential in biomedical technology and industrial applications. We are developing new molecular machines and optimising their assembly. Recent innovation in the world of nanotechnology concerns the design and manufacture of synthetic and hybrid machines, based on existing biologi ....Design and Fabrication of Molecular Machines: the Nanomachines of the Future. Nanotechnology that incorporates the use of nanomachines and molecular machines is an exciting new area of translational research, with broad potential in biomedical technology and industrial applications. We are developing new molecular machines and optimising their assembly. Recent innovation in the world of nanotechnology concerns the design and manufacture of synthetic and hybrid machines, based on existing biological molecular machines but incorporating synthetic parts. Australia has an opportunity to be at the forefront of these new developments in nanotechnology, with a new generation of Australian scientists being trained across the foundation disciplines of chemistry, physics and molecular biology.Read moreRead less
Anticipating, Combating and Exploiting the Evolution of Pesticide Resistance in Australian Agricultural Pests and Disease Vectors. Synthetic insecticides have resulted in an explosion in food production through effective insect control. However, insects have begun to evolve resistance against one of the most widely used classes of insecticides (organophosphates) via mutations in carboxylesterases (CBEs). To address this problem, the ability to anticipate further evolution, combat it and exploit ....Anticipating, Combating and Exploiting the Evolution of Pesticide Resistance in Australian Agricultural Pests and Disease Vectors. Synthetic insecticides have resulted in an explosion in food production through effective insect control. However, insects have begun to evolve resistance against one of the most widely used classes of insecticides (organophosphates) via mutations in carboxylesterases (CBEs). To address this problem, the ability to anticipate further evolution, combat it and exploit it for our own benefit is needed. This project aims to anticipate evolution by simulating it in the laboratory, allowing for the best preparation for change. New pesticides will be designed to combat insecticide resistance based upon the molecular structure of an insect CBE. This project aims to exploit these newly evolved enzymes to create biosensors and decontamination agents.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100195
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,000,000.00
Summary
Field-emission gun transmission electron microscope for the research in nanomaterials, metal alloys and biological sciences. The proposed facility is required by a large range of world-leading research programs in light metals, nanomaterials, fibres and biomaterials. These research programs are strongly supported by automobile, textile, mineral and advanced materials industries that have important roles in the current national economy and local communities. The facility will improve significan ....Field-emission gun transmission electron microscope for the research in nanomaterials, metal alloys and biological sciences. The proposed facility is required by a large range of world-leading research programs in light metals, nanomaterials, fibres and biomaterials. These research programs are strongly supported by automobile, textile, mineral and advanced materials industries that have important roles in the current national economy and local communities. The facility will improve significantly our current research ability and help the creation of new research areas in nanotechnology and energy materials beneficial to clean energy, environmental protections and health care. It is also important equipment for new research student training.Read moreRead less
The hidden secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential of fungi. This proposal aims to develop synthetic biology tools to allow rapid access to the hidden metabolites encoded in fungal genomes and discover how they interact with plant and animal hosts. Genome sequencing reveals that fungi harbour vast hidden potential for biosynthesis of bioactive small molecules. The lack of tools to efficiently access this hidden potential has hindered the ability to develop this uncharted chemical diversity f ....The hidden secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential of fungi. This proposal aims to develop synthetic biology tools to allow rapid access to the hidden metabolites encoded in fungal genomes and discover how they interact with plant and animal hosts. Genome sequencing reveals that fungi harbour vast hidden potential for biosynthesis of bioactive small molecules. The lack of tools to efficiently access this hidden potential has hindered the ability to develop this uncharted chemical diversity for pharmaceutics and agriculture, and understand their biological roles in pathogens. Expected outcomes include sources of bioactive molecules and better management of fungal diseases in crops and humans.Read moreRead less
Protein design. This project aims to design binding specificity in proteins in a rational way. Extending the existing repertoire of protein specificity using engineering principles should harness the catalytic power and high binding affinities of natural proteins. By building upon protein design algorithms, this project will develop biosensors for neurotransmitters and specialist enzymes to incorporate unnatural amino acids. It will iteratively improve the designs and algorithms by computational ....Protein design. This project aims to design binding specificity in proteins in a rational way. Extending the existing repertoire of protein specificity using engineering principles should harness the catalytic power and high binding affinities of natural proteins. By building upon protein design algorithms, this project will develop biosensors for neurotransmitters and specialist enzymes to incorporate unnatural amino acids. It will iteratively improve the designs and algorithms by computational and experimental characterisation. The outcomes should address the long-standing need in synthetic biology for a facile route to designer proteinsRead moreRead less
ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology. The ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology (CoESB) will provide the technical innovation critical for Australia to develop a vibrant bioeconomy building on the nation’s strengths in agriculture. For thousands of years we have used microbes to create bread, wine, cheese. Now, our Centre will pioneer new approaches to the design of synthetic microbes, enabling the development of custom-designed microbial communities, synthetic organelles and ne ....ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology. The ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology (CoESB) will provide the technical innovation critical for Australia to develop a vibrant bioeconomy building on the nation’s strengths in agriculture. For thousands of years we have used microbes to create bread, wine, cheese. Now, our Centre will pioneer new approaches to the design of synthetic microbes, enabling the development of custom-designed microbial communities, synthetic organelles and new to nature biological pathways and enzymes. CoESB will combine engineering with molecular biology to design and construct novel biological systems that can convert biomass from agriculture or waste streams to biofuel, bioplastics and other high-value chemicals.Read moreRead less