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Team:LMU-Munich/Why Beadzillus
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Revision as of 16:40, 26 October 2012
The LMU-Munich team is exuberantly happy about the great success at the World Championship Jamboree in Boston. Our project Beadzillus finished 4th and won the prize for the "Best Wiki" (with Slovenia) and "Best New Application Project".
[ more news ]
The Filter Issue
Filters are widely used in everyday life and within the lab. Filters, such as Brita filters for removing calcium and other contaminants from drinking water and plumbing systems are abundant. In the lab, filters (here usually refered to as columns) are used for DNA/protein purification and for protein characterization.
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Synthetic beads
Such filters usually consist of a cartridge that is filled with some type of matrix which determines the function of the filter. To maximize the surface in a minimal volume, microbeads are commonly used in all types of filters. These beads have a specific size and can for example be used to display protein on their surface. The coupling of proteins to the beads is based on affinity binding. An example are Ni-NTA resins (or beads) that can be used to bind proteins that harbour a His-tag. If a protein is bound this way to the beads, its features then determine the functional properties of such protein-loaded beads.
Such beads are usually quite expensive and coupling of proteins to the beads is laborious, as the protein has to be expressed, bound to the beads and then washed. Additionally, the binding of the protein is non-covalent.
SynBio beads
To solve this problem, we have developed a synthetic biology solution in our project Beadzillus, in which biological beads display a protein of choice. We call these biological beads Sporobeads.
But what are our biological beads made of? Using clever natural engineering millions of years ago, evolution developed endospores of the soil bacteria Bacillus subtilis. Endospores, which are highly resistant to environmental stressors and can survive harsh conditions, are a dormant life stage of B. subtilis. To get to know more about the life cycle and the production of endospores, have a look at the life cycle of B. subtilis on the next page.
