SBIR Phase I: Environmental Biofilm Decontamination and Enhanced Energy Efficiency with Engineered Phage

小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将评估使用工程噬菌体处理工业基础设施中细菌生物膜的可行性。 细菌是工业环境中污染、腐蚀、生物结垢和能源效率低下的主要来源，每年给美国公众造成220亿美元的损失。 它们持续地占据着工业基础设施，如热交换器、冷却塔和传输管道。 当细菌附着在表面时，它们会产生一种保护性的粘液，称为生物膜。 这些生物膜类似于牙菌斑，可导致腐蚀和不良的传热。 生物膜为细菌提供了抵抗常规杀生物剂如漂白剂和其他有毒杀生物剂的庇护所。 由于环境毒性、腐蚀性和抗生物膜功效差的组合，目前的化学和机械处理不足以修复工业生物膜。 利用合成生物学，噬菌体？细菌的天敌？已经被设计成靶向生物膜中的细菌，并迫使它们表达以高效、环保的方式降解生物膜的蛋白质。该项目的目的是测试这些工程菌，单独或与杀菌剂结合，对模型工业系统中生长的生物膜的功效。 这项研究的更广泛/商业影响是减少有毒，腐蚀性，昂贵和对环境有害的化学杀菌剂的使用，提高能源效率，并增加工业系统中的基础设施寿命。 该项目产生的产品将构成工业环境中生物膜污染的尖端处理方法。 该项目也是合成生物学实际应用于解决工业和环境问题的一个重要科学里程碑。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will evaluate the feasibility of using engineered bacteriophages to treat bacterial biofilms in industrial infrastructure. Bacteria are a major source of contamination, corrosion, bio-fouling, and energy inefficiency in industrial settings, costing the American public $22B annually. They persistently colonize industrial infrastructure such as heat exchangers, cooling towers and transmission pipes. When bacteria settle on surfaces, they create a protective slime, called a biofilm. These biofilms are similar to dental plaque and can cause corrosion and poor heat transfer. Biofilms provide shelter for bacteria against conventional biocides, such as bleach and other toxic biocides. Current chemical and mechanical treatments are inadequate for remediating industrial biofilms due to a combination of environmental toxicity, corrosiveness and poor anti-biofilm efficacy. Using synthetic biology, bacteriophages?the natural enemy of bacteria?have been engineered to target bacteria in biofilms and force them to express proteins that degrade biofilms in a highly effective, environmentally friendly manner. This project aims to test the efficacy of these engineered phages, alone or in combination with biocides, against biofilms grown in model industrial systems. The broader/commercial impact of this research is to reduce the use of toxic, corrosive, expensive, and environmentally damaging chemical biocides, improve energy efficiency, and increase infrastructure lifetimes in industrial systems. Products resulting from this project will constitute cutting-edge treatments for biofilm contaminations in industrial settings. This project also represents a major scientific milestone in the practical application of synthetic biology to remediate industrial and environmental problems.