Understanding and exploiting the phage toolbox for biomedical and biotechnological applications

In this project, a new phage-derived nuclease with uniqe properties will be introduced as a biotechnological tool. More specifically, the potential of the nuclease to be used in industrial and medical applications that require the removal of DNA, will be evaluated. A suite of nuclease variants with different characteristics will be generated and assessed for their applicability in different domains. The first application involves the use of the nucleases to improve the recovery of intracellular fermentation products by reducing the product stream viscosity, which is caused by chromosomal DNA. This will be both obtained by external addition of the purified nucleases, as well as engineering industrial fermentation strains with fully optimized nuclease activity. In the second part of this project, the nucleases will be engineered to develop several strategies to combat persistent biofilms in industrial and medical settings. On the one hand, coatings will be developed to prevent biofilm formation. On the other hand, a new generation of antibacterials will be designed that combine biofilm matrix degradation and bacterial killing into one molecule.

Publication year:2021

Accessibility:Open