SBIR Phase I: Production of natural sun-protective compounds

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发可持续生产的、有效的天然防晒化合物，这些化合物发现于海洋生物中，用于护肤应用。世界卫生组织估计，每三个被诊断出的癌症中就有一个是皮肤癌。皮肤癌的流行和光老化的威胁正在推动全球防晒产品市场的增长，预计到2020年将达到70多亿美元。然而，目前市场上的许多化学防晒成分已被证明对环境有害和/或对健康有不利影响。目标是在经济和可持续的酵母生物制造系统中生产出先前确定的海洋防晒化合物gadusol，并取代目前使用的有问题的防晒成分。这个SBIR一期项目建议开发一种可持续的方法来生产一种天然的、基于海洋的防晒霜成分，用于护肤应用。本项目重点研究利用微生物发酵和合成生物学手段，提高鱼源性uv - b吸收防晒霜gadusol的产量和回收率。gadusol生物合成途径最近被引入酵母。他的项目的关键技术目标是提高gadusol的产量，评估酵母生产的gadusol在护肤品中的应用，并开发适用于大规模生产的纯化方法。该项目的预期结果是一种从天然来源提取的未充分利用的新型防晒化合物，它有可能提供紫外线防护，而不会像目前的商业成分那样带来健康和环境风险。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project is the development of sustainably produced, effective natural sunscreen compound found in marine organisms for skincare applications. The World Health Organization estimates that one in every three cancers diagnosed is a skin cancer. The prevalence of skin cancer, and the threat of photoaging, is driving growth in the global market for sun protection products, which is predicted to reach over $7 B by 2020. However, many chemical sunscreen ingredients on the market today have been shown to be harmful to the environment and/or to have adverse health effects. The goal is to produce a previously identified marine sunscreen compound, gadusol, in an economical and sustainable yeast biomanufacturing system, and replace problematic sunscreen ingredients in current use. This SBIR Phase I project proposes to develop a sustainable means of producing a natural, marine-based sunscreen ingredient for skincare applications. This project focuses on increasing yields and recovery of gadusol, a fish-derived UV-B-absorbing sunscreen, by using the tools of microbial fermentation and synthetic biology. The gadusol biosynthetic pathway was recently introduced into yeast. The key technical objectives of his project are to improve gadusol yields, evaluate yeast-produced gadusol use in skin care products, and develop methods for purification that will be applicable to large-scale production. The anticipated outcome of this project is a new and underutilized sunscreen compound derived from natural sources that has the potential to provide UV protection without the health and environmental risks associated with current commercial ingredients.