Difference between revisions of "Team:OLS Canmore/Design"
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<h3 class="ols_header" id="ols_design"> DESIGN </h3> | <h3 class="ols_header" id="ols_design"> DESIGN </h3> | ||
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| + | <h4 class="ols_header" id="ols_design_introduction"> INTRODUCTION </h4> | ||
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| + | <p class="ols_bodytext"> This year, our team continued to build upon our previous year’s project in hopes of using synthetic biology to solve the keratin waste problem, in wastewater treatment facilities and the poultry industry. It was discovered that hair build up in the pipes of wastewater treatment facilities can lead to the damaging of equipment as well as cause processes to slow down.The current method of removing waste is done manually which is problematic as it is very expensive and time consuming. <br> <br> | ||
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| + | Along with the issue of hair build up in wastewater treatment plants, we are also tackling the build up of feathers within the poultry industry. Because large quantities of feathers are produced, the current disposal methods are not very effective or environmentally conscious. Our team decided to fix these issues by effectively degrading the keratin within hair and feathers while simultaneously lowering the environmental impact. In order to counteract the keratin waste issue, our team has designed two keratinase expression cassettes, for expression in E. coli K12. The first keratinase expressed in E. coli we have synthesized is keratinase A (KerA), which is an enzyme optimized for the breakdown of hair. The second keratinase that was synthesized was keratinase US (KerUS), an enzyme optimized for feather degradation. </p> | ||
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Revision as of 21:50, 17 October 2016
DESIGN
INTRODUCTION
This year, our team continued to build upon our previous year’s project in hopes of using synthetic biology to solve the keratin waste problem, in wastewater treatment facilities and the poultry industry. It was discovered that hair build up in the pipes of wastewater treatment facilities can lead to the damaging of equipment as well as cause processes to slow down.The current method of removing waste is done manually which is problematic as it is very expensive and time consuming.
Along with the issue of hair build up in wastewater treatment plants, we are also tackling the build up of feathers within the poultry industry. Because large quantities of feathers are produced, the current disposal methods are not very effective or environmentally conscious. Our team decided to fix these issues by effectively degrading the keratin within hair and feathers while simultaneously lowering the environmental impact. In order to counteract the keratin waste issue, our team has designed two keratinase expression cassettes, for expression in E. coli K12. The first keratinase expressed in E. coli we have synthesized is keratinase A (KerA), which is an enzyme optimized for the breakdown of hair. The second keratinase that was synthesized was keratinase US (KerUS), an enzyme optimized for feather degradation.
