CAREER: Aqueous Two-Phase Separation of DNA Using PNA-Conjugated Amphiphiles

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The PI proposes experiments to identify ATPS polymers and operating conditions so that tagged DNA will strongly partition to one phase, leaving polar proteins and untagged DNA in the other phase. By proper molecular design, the PNA amphiphile will dissociate from the DNA product upon heating the system above the melting transition temperature (Tm) of the PNA-DNA recognition complex. He will also describe a series of theoretical and experimental techniques that will be used to design PNA amphiphiles so that they specifically bind plasmid DNA, but have Tm in a useful range for ATPS. In addition to the development of a useful biochemical process, molecular-level design of the PNA amphiphile-DNA binding complex proposed here should also shed light on the contribution of intermolecular forces to the structure and function of biomolecular materials.His education plan aims to cultivate molecular-level insight in the chemical engineering curriculum by a series of short modules to be assigned in core chemical engineering courses. Molecular modeling and experimental results of the research proposed here will be integrated into the modules, which are designed to predict fundamental engineering properties such as thermal conductivity, viscosity, and vapor-liquid equilibrium from molecular parameters. Another educational effort he proposes is a two-week mini-course for a colloid/interfacial engineering course that emphasizes the connection between biotechnology and colloid science.