SBIR Phase I: Microbial Production of Selected Anthocyanins

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目“微生物生产精选花青素”，旨在建立成本效益高的方法，从基因工程细菌中高效生产花青素。花青素是植物次生代谢产物，主要负责植物组织的颜色，主要是红色、紫色和蓝色。它们是无毒的，并且已被观察到具有抗氧化，抗癌和抗炎活性，因此使它们成为制药，膳食补充剂和食品着色剂行业的有吸引力的候选者。随着花青素的益处不断得到定义，对这些化合物的需求呈指数级增长。不幸的是，使用传统技术获得纯或定义良好的花青素混合物的成本超过了潜在的市场回报。通过使用工程微生物，理论上可以生产大量选定的花青素，使化合物分离效率高，成本低。这项研究的更广泛影响是生产具有成本效益的天然和非天然花青素，其健康益处可以进行调查；允许学生参与和培训正在进行的微生物生产平台的开发；促进美国学术机构和美国公司之间的合作，并为一家小型专业化学品公司的扩张做出贡献。这个项目将利用学生创造一个生物合成系统，将产生大量的花青素。一旦获得这些化合物，它们将被推向市场，在那里它们可以被学术界、工业界和政府机构进一步研究。该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project "Microbial Production of Selected Anthocyanins", aims to establish cost-effective methodologies for the efficient production of anthocyanins from genetically engineered bacteria. Anthocyanins are plant secondary metabolites that are mainly responsible for the colors in plant tissues, primarily reds, purples and blues. They are non-toxic and have been observed to possess antioxidant, anticancer and anti-inflammatory activities, thus making them attractive candidates in the pharmaceutical, dietary supplement, and food colorants industries. As the benefits of anthocyanins continue to gain definition, the demand for these compounds is growing exponentially. Unfortunately, the cost of attaining pure or well defined mixtures of anthocyanins using conventional techniques outweighs the potential market return. By using engineered microbes, large batches of selected anthocyanins can theoretically be produced, making compound isolation efficient and cost effective.The broader impacts of this research are to produce cost-effective natural and non-natural anthocyanins, whose health benefits can be investigated; allow students to participate and train in the ongoing development of a microbial production platform; foster a collaboration between a U.S. academic institution and a U.S. company, and contribute to the expansion of a small specialtychemical company. This project will utilize students to create a biosynthetic system that will produce a vast array of anthocyanins. As these compounds are attained they will be moved to the market place, where they can be further researched by academia, industry and governmental agencies.This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).