Development of biosensor technology for the measurement and control of off-note flavours in the Scotch Whisky industry

开发用于测量和控制苏格兰威士忌行业异味的生物传感器技术

• 批准号: 2589240
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of Edinburgh
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2589240
• 关键词: Development; biosensor; technology; measurement; control

This project is a collaboration with the Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI). The aim of the project is to investigate the potential of developing biosensor-based technology to identify and quantify compounds present in whiskies that would be perceived as off-notes by the consumer, with the aim of developing rapid quality control techniques that could be used in the production environment.Since flavour is the primary driver of consumer acceptability in Scotch Whisky, it is vital that the industry monitors, controls and optimises the flavour of their products. Currently the industry takes two approaches to the measurement of flavour, chemical analysis (eg, GCMS) and sensory evaluation by trained human assessors. Analytical methods fail to account for the effects of mixtures of compounds, and may lack the required sensitivity, whereas human assessment has an unavoidable level of variability.This project will explore biological measurements which mimic actual perception of flavour, focusing on the development of specific biosensors for the detection of the main off-note flavours that can develop as whisky matures in oak casks. To be useful, the biosensor device must be sensitive, specific, and give a rapid response at the point of use, without requiring samples to be transferred to a laboratory. Transcriptional biosensors rely on the response of genetic promoter elements to particular molecules. Sensors based on live cells can not be used outside a laboratory setting, but this can be overcome by the use of cell-free transcription-translation (TX/TL) systems, or even simpler transcription-only (TXO) systems, which are simple, cheap, and can give responses visible by eye within minutes (Millacura et al, 2020).This project aims to develop biosensors of this type to detect four classes of compounds: 'musty' (anisoles, especially 2,4,6-trichloroanisole); 'sour' (acetic acid); 'solvent' (ethyl acetate); and 'phenolic' (phenols and cresols). This requires discovery of suitably responsive promoters and introducing them into TX/TL and TXO systems for evaluation. Where known promoters exist which respond to the desired targets, these may be synthesised and tested against pure compounds and then samples supplied by SWRI. Secondly, various bacteria will be exposed to vapours of the target chemicals to empirically determine which promoters are activated. Promising promoters will be further improved through directed evolution. In parallel with this, an improved sensor format will be developed which is suitable for the testing environment. Such a platform could also be valuable in many other applications.The successful candidate will be able to liaise with whisky producers, with SWRI providing industry contacts and a forum to present and discuss results. Additionally they will join a cohort of students within the IBioIC PhD training programme, as well as the interdisciplinary Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), where they will be encouraged to make full use of the expertise and world-class facilities available, to gain in-depth training in relevant experimental techniques and transferable skills to support their future career developmen

该项目是与苏格兰威士忌研究所（SWRI）合作的。该项目的目的是研究开发基于生物传感器的技术的潜力，以识别和量化威士忌中存在的化合物，这些化合物会被消费者认为是脱味的，目的是开发可用于生产环境的快速质量控制技术。由于风味是苏格兰威士忌消费者接受度的主要驱动因素，因此行业监控、控制和优化产品风味至关重要。目前，该行业采用两种方法来测量风味，化学分析（如GCMS）和由训练有素的人类评估员进行感官评估。分析方法无法解释化合物混合物的影响，并且可能缺乏所需的灵敏度，而人类评估具有不可避免的可变性。该项目将探索模拟实际风味感知的生物测量方法，重点是开发特定的生物传感器，用于检测威士忌在橡木桶中成熟时可能产生的主要异味。为了发挥作用，生物传感器设备必须灵敏、特异，并在使用点给出快速反应，而不需要将样品转移到实验室。转录生物传感器依赖于基因启动子对特定分子的反应。基于活细胞的传感器不能在实验室环境外使用，但可以通过使用无细胞转录-翻译（TX/TL）系统或更简单的转录-翻译（TXO）系统来克服这一问题，这些系统简单、便宜，并且可以在几分钟内给出肉眼可见的反应（Millacura等人，2020）。该项目旨在开发这种类型的生物传感器，以检测四类化合物：“霉味”（茴香醚，特别是2,4,6-三氯茴香醚）；“酸的”（醋酸）；“溶剂”（乙酸乙酯）；“酚类”（酚类和甲酚类）。这需要发现适当的反应启动子，并将其引入TX/TL和TXO系统进行评估。如果已知的启动子对预期的靶标有反应，这些启动子可以被合成并测试纯化合物，然后由SWRI提供样品。其次，将各种细菌暴露在目标化学物质的蒸气中，以经验确定哪些启动子被激活。有希望的启动子将通过定向进化进一步改进。与此同时，将开发一种改进的传感器格式，适合于测试环境。这样的平台在许多其他应用程序中也很有价值。成功的候选人将能够与威士忌生产商联系，SWRI提供行业联系和论坛来展示和讨论结果。此外，他们将加入IBioIC博士培训计划的学生队伍，以及跨学科的合成与系统生物学中心（SynthSys），在那里他们将被鼓励充分利用现有的专业知识和世界一流的设施，在相关实验技术和可转移技能方面获得深入的培训，以支持他们未来的职业发展