EAGER: Elucidating Protein - Colloid Interactions for Enhanced Bio-Energy Applications

主要研究者：Somasundaran，Ponisseril提案编号：1242524机构：哥伦比亚大学标题：EAGER：阐明蛋白质-胶体相互作用增强生物能源应用替代能源技术的一个新兴趋势是使用酶或其他功能蛋白质来产生能量;这已经可以在生物燃料的努力中看到，其中酶用于将结晶纤维素分解成简单的糖。更激进的方法？生物能源？包括生物燃料电池，其中酶是氧化糖以产生电流的催化剂;或生物太阳能，其利用光合蛋白质来捕获和利用光子能量。生态优势是显而易见的：酶催化过程是低温的，不需要苛刻的溶剂。然而，挑战在于找到最大限度地提高其稳定性和功能的生物环境之外的方法。胶体相互作用;特别是那些使活性部分似乎？察觉到了吗通过它们所嵌入的蛋白质结构来改变它们的环境。负责这些大分子的感觉现象的机制可能是负责的协同相互作用之间发生的非离子表面活性剂和酶，导致在增加酶activity.PI假设，表面活性剂聚集体（胶束）与酶的外部结构相互作用，影响波动的变化，造成亚埃尺度的动态运动，最终影响活性位点的位置和运动范围。PI将通过探索性研究计划来研究这一新概念-从比较酶动力学的基础开始，了解胶体和蛋白质结构行为，然后是分子动力学建模。根据这些观察结果，PI打算开发酶结构与表面活性剂以及表面活性剂聚集体之间发生的物理相互作用的完整模型，最终目标是确定非离子表面活性剂胶束之间是否存在联系，酶结构的灵活性和酶的活性。这一以前未探索的概念试图建立一个桥梁之间的大量相互作用的酶动力学在拥挤的胶体具有原子尺度运动和力的系统，这些运动和力决定了蛋白质的灵活性和选择性。由于PI正在寻求在可观察现象的两个极端之间找到一致性，因此需要多学科方法;包括但不限于研究指示蛋白质结构动力学状态的大分子现象，例如反应动力学，静态结构光谱学和胶体物理学。然后，PI将这些发现与二维光谱学和分子动力学建模中的新技术相关联，以研究皮尺度的空间和时间现象，停止量子效应开始使观察复杂化的区域。该项目对生物燃料和替代能源以外的几个领域有影响，例如：家庭个人护理、废物管理和医药，通过利用它们与蛋白质结构构象动力学之间的协同作用，可能减少各种应用所消耗的化学品。PI将利用这个项目来培训和吸引本科生，特别是那些来自目标群体的学生，他们已经被这些绿色项目所吸引。在尽可能多的，这还有待证实，这个广泛的跨学科范围的调查，加上新兴的仪器技术，并具有前瞻性的影响，上述切线领域，标志着这个项目作为一个？高风险和高回报？#21453;，并提出了相应的要求。

PI: Somasundaran, PonisserilProposal Number: 1242524Institution: Columbia UniversityTitle: EAGER: Elucidating Protein - Colloid Interactions for Enhanced Bio-Energy ApplicationsAn emerging trend in alternative energy technologies is the use of enzymes or other functional proteins to generate energy; this can already be seen in bio-fuel efforts, where enzymes are used to break down crystalline cellulose into simpler sugars. More radical approaches to ?bio-energy? include bio-fuel cells, where enzymes are the catalysts that oxidize sugar to generate a current; or bio-solar which takes advantage of photosynthetic proteins to capture and harness photonic energy. The ecological advantages are apparent: enzyme catalyzed processes are low temperature and require no harsh solvents. However, the challenge lies in finding ways of maximizing their stability and function outside of a biological environment.The goal of this EAGER project is to explore the unknown interactions that arise from protein ? colloid interactions; specifically those that enable active portions to seemingly ?perceive? their environment through the protein structure in which they are embedded. Whatever mechanisms responsible for these macromolecular sensory phenomena may be responsible for the synergistic interactions which occur between non-ionic surfactants and enzymes, resulting in increased enzyme activity.PI hypothesizes that surfactant aggregates (micelles) interact with the external structure of enzymes to affect changes in fluctuations, causing sub-angstrom scale dynamic motions which ultimately affect the active site position and range of motion. The PI will study this novel concept through a exploratory research plan - starting with a foundation in comparing enzyme kinetics, to understanding colloid and protein structure behavior, and then molecular dynamic modeling. From these observations, the PI intend to develop a thorough model of the physical interactions that occur between the enzyme structure and surfactants as well as surfactant-aggregates, with the ultimate goal of determining if there is a connection between non-ionic surfactant micelles, enzyme structure flexibility and enzyme activity.This previously unexplored concept attempts to build a bridge between the bulk interactions of enzyme kinetics in crowded colloid systems with the atomic scale motions and forces that dictate elements of protein flexibility and selectivity. Because the PI are seeking to find agreement between two extremes of observable phenomena, a multidisciplinary approach is required; including but not limited to studying the bulk macromolecular phenomena that are indicative of the state of protein structure dynamics, such as reaction kinetics, static structure spectroscopy and colloid physics. The PI will then correlate these findings with investigations with novel techniques in 2d spectroscopy and molecular dynamics modeling to investigate pico-scale spatial and temporal phenomena, stopping short of regions where quantum effects begin to complicate observations.This project has implications for biofuel and for several fields outside of alternative energy, such as: home-personal care, waste management and medicine, possibly reducing the chemicals consumed for various applications by taking advantage of synergies between them and protein structural conformation dynamics. The PI will use this project to train and engage undergraduate students, particularly those from targeted groups, who have become attracted to such Green projects. In as much as this has yet to be substantiated, this broad interdisciplinary scope of investigation, coupled with emerging instrumental techniques, and prospective implications to the tangent fields mentioned above, mark this project as a ?high risk and high reward? situation, and an appropriate EAGER submission.