Accelerating bioelectronics for maritime environments through cellular selections
Abstract
Bioelectronics in microorganisms has potential for distributed, maritime sensing, computation, recording, and actuation. Microbial bioelectronic sensors that rapidly detect a diverse arrange of chemicals would give unprecedented ability to detect and respond to environmental and security threats in maritime environments. However, the development of new bioelectronic sensors in marine microorganisms is currently bottlenecked by the time-consuming nature of engineering new electron transfer proteins and pathways. Here, we propose to develop and use a generalizable selection-based strategy to systematically discover design rules for electron transfer inmarine microorganisms. We will undertake three aims: i) to develop a generalizable selection for electron flux based on NADH toxicity in Escherichia coli and Vibrio natriegens, ii) to identify optimal direct electron transfer and accessory pathways in E. coli, and iii) to mine libraries of electron transfer protein mutants in V. natriegens for improved activity. This work will thus accelerate and democratize our ability to exploit electron transfer pathways and proteins for microbial bioelectronics in maritime environments.Approved for Public Release
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Dec 15, 2023
- Source ID
- N000142412034
Entities
People
- Caroline M Ajo-Franklin
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- Rice University
- United States Navy