I-Corps: Industrial Enzymes from the Microbiomes of Household Insects

开发能够催化植物细胞壁材料(木质纤维素)高效转化为可发酵糖或高价值化学构件的酶是许多工业酶公司的重要目标。然而，目前用于降解植物细胞壁的酶在有限的条件下是活跃的；例如，它们不能处理非常酸性或碱性的条件。这项研究项目旨在确定可用于分解植物细胞壁等难降解材料的工业酶。这种酶在产生能量和修复污染方面很有用。这个项目寻求找到在不同条件下活跃的新酶，并因此最大限度地发挥作用。使用这些改进的酶将使工业过程变得更便宜、更大容量和更高效。这项研究将导致概念验证，特别是从家养昆虫的微生物群中生产至少一种具有商业意义的酶。该项目还将为至少两种类型的专利提供基础：1)从骆驼蟋蟀和真皮甲虫中分离木质纤维素酶的方法，以及2)在该项目过程中确定的重组酶的应用。I-Corps计划将使团队能够寻找行业合作伙伴，根据行业合作伙伴的需求和利益定制拟议的研究。在执行本提案中概述的研究目标时，该小组将首先有机会使分离和筛选平台的开发成熟，该平台旨在从家用昆虫微生物群中识别对生物技术/工业应用有实用价值的微生物和酶，并与目标技术公司建立关系。此外，拟议的研究还可以回答有关家居昆虫的生态、它们的微生物区系以及这些昆虫用来降解和消化永久性家居材料的酶的几个问题。

Developing enzymes that can catalyze efficient conversion of plant cell wall material (lignocellulose) to fermentable sugars or high-value chemical building blocks is an important goal of many industrial enzyme companies. However, the current enzymes being used for plant cell wall degradation are active under a limited set of conditions; they can't, for example, deal with very acidic or basic conditions. This research project seeks to identify industrial enzymes that can be used to break down hard-to-degrade materials such as plant cell walls. Such enzymes are useful in producing energy and in remediating pollution. This project seeks to find new enzymes that are active in diverse conditions and, as such, maximally useful. The use of these improved enzymes would allow industrial processes to be cheaper, higher volume and more efficient. This research will result in a proof-of-concept, specifically the production of at least one commercially relevant enzyme from the microbiome of household insects. The project will also result in providing the basis for at least two types of patents: 1) process of isolating lignocellulosic enzymes from camel crickets and dermestid beetles and 2) the application of recombinant enzymes identified in the course this project. The I-Corps program will enable the team to seek out industrial partnerships to customize the proposed research to the needs and interests of the industrial partners. In performing the research goals outlined in this proposal, the team will foremost have the opportunity to mature the development of an isolation and screening platform designed to identify microorganisms and enzymes from household insect microbiomes that have utility for biotechnological/industrial applications and to form relationships with target technology companies. In addition the proposed research could also answer several questions about the ecology of the household insects, their microbiota, and the enzymes used by these insects to degrade and digest permanent household materials.