Refocusing and Refactoring Electrical Pathways
Abstract
This project aims to gain control of the recently discovered Geobacter electron transfer network via two complementary goals: 1) Build Geobacter strains that contain minimal electron transfer modules, to refocus electron transfer onto specific tasks, and 2) Build completely synthetic, refactored electron transfer modules for expression and study in Shewanella and E. coli. This synthetic biology project specifically relates to ongoing Naval priorities in next-generation biorobots dependent upon bacterial and cellular controllers for device autonomy. The effort will focus on the biological pathways with the highest known rates of electrical current production, which have the most flexibility based on interacting elements. The bacteria central to this project have applications in other Naval priorities, such as environmental electricity harvesting, biosensing, biocorrosion, and desalination. The refactoring project will deliver modules for exploitation via genetic circuitry, and allow optimization approaches that are difficult to apply in slower-growing environmental bacteria.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jun 03, 2016
- Source ID
- N000141612194
Entities
People
- Daniel R. Bond
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- Regents of the University of Minnesota
- United States Navy