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

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目将评估在工业基础设施中使用工程噬菌体处理细菌生物膜的可行性。细菌是工业环境中污染、腐蚀、生物污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。它们长期侵占热交换器、冷却塔和输电管道等工业基础设施。当细菌附着在表面时，它们会产生一种被称为生物膜的保护性粘液。这些生物膜类似于牙菌斑，会导致腐蚀和热量传递不良。生物膜为细菌提供了抵御传统杀菌剂的庇护所，如漂白剂和其他有毒杀生剂。由于环境毒性、腐蚀性和较差的抗生物膜效果，目前的化学和机械处理方法不足以修复工业生物膜。利用合成生物学，细菌的天敌--噬菌体--已经被设计成针对生物膜中的细菌，并迫使它们以高效、环境友好的方式表达降解生物膜的蛋白质。该项目旨在测试这些工程噬菌体单独或与杀菌剂联合使用，对在模拟工业系统中生长的生物膜的效果。这项研究的更广泛/商业影响是减少有毒、腐蚀性、昂贵和破坏环境的化学杀生剂的使用，提高能源效率，并延长工业系统的基础设施寿命。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。该项目也代表了合成生物学实际应用于补救工业和环境问题的一个重大科学里程碑。

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.