Borg, Y;
(2015)
Design, Mathematical Modelling, Construction and Testing of Synthetic Gene Network Oscillators to Establish Roseobacter Clade Bacteria and the Protozoan Trypanosoma brucei as Synthetic Biology Chassis.
Doctoral thesis , UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
The aim of this project is to establish Roseobacter marine bacteria and Trypanosoma brucei (T. brucei) protozoa as synthetic biology chassis. This work addresses the gap within synthetic biology resulting from the limited choice of host cells available for use in practice. This was done by developing synthetic bacterial and trypanosomal genetic regulatory networks (GRNs) which function as an oscillator as well as by developing the necessary protocols and set-ups to allow for the analysis of GRN dynamics within the host. Roseobacter clade bacteria are naturally found in diverse oceanic habitats and have an important ecological role in balancing global carbon levels. This makes Roseobacter an ideal chassis for future efforts to apply synthetic biology to bioremediation and geo-engineering challenges. The aim of this investigation was to establish straight-forward molecular biology procedures in Roseobacter bacteria followed by characterisation and modelling of an E. coli oscillator in Roseobacter. Results showed that Roseobacter synthetic biology is non-trivial. Protozoa are exploited as host cells for industrial production of biotherapeutics due to fast doubling times and host proteins’ mammalian-like post-translational glycosylation. As an established model organism for studying protozoa, T. brucei provided a test case for establishing synthetic biology in this phylum for the first time. T. brucei is highly divergent from eukaryotes commonly used in synthetic biology and possesses a sophisticated genomic machinery to evade host immune systems. The establishment of standard synthetic biology approaches in mathematical modelling and gene network design in T. brucei will underpin application of synthetic biology to enhance the industrial capability of the protozoa as a chassis and to probe its pathobiology. This investigation involved design and assembly of a Goodwin oscillator, followed by characterisation and modelling of the network and the development of a novel experimental set-up for live-cell imaging of single motile trypanosomes. Results showed that T. brucei is a promising novel synthetic biology chassis
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Design, Mathematical Modelling, Construction and Testing of Synthetic Gene Network Oscillators to Establish Roseobacter Clade Bacteria and the Protozoan Trypanosoma brucei as Synthetic Biology Chassis. |
| Event: | University College London |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Biochemical Engineering |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1472672 |
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