Project acronym BIOMATE
Project Soft Biomade Materials: Modular Protein Polymers and their nano-assemblies
Researcher (PI) Martinus Abraham Cohen Stuart
Host Institution (HI) WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE5, ERC-2010-AdG_20100224
Summary From a polymer chemistry perspective, the way in which nature produces its plethora of different proteins is a miracle of precision: the synthesis of each single molecule is directed by the sequence information chemically coded in DNA. The present state of recombinant DNA technology should in principle allow us to make genes that code for entirely new, very sophisticated amino acid polymers, which are chosen and designed by man to serve as new polymer materials. It has been shown that it is indeed possible to make use of the protein biosynthetic machinery and produce such de novo protein polymers, but it is not clear what their potentials are in terms of new materials with desired functionalities.
I propose to develop a new class of protein polymers, chosen such that they form nanostructured materials by triggered folding and multimolecular assembly. The plan is based on three innovative ideas: (i) each new protein polymer will be constructed from a limited set of selected amino acid sequences, called modules (hence the term modular protein polymers) (ii) new, high-yield fermentation strategies will be developed so that polymers will become available in significant quantities for evaluation and application; (iii) the design of modular protein polymers is carried out as a cyclic process in which sequence selection, construction of artificial genes, optimisation of fermentation for high yield, studying polymer folding and assembly, and modelling of the nanostructure by molecular simulation are all logically connected, allowing efficient selection of target sequences.
This project is a cross-road. It brings together biotechnology and polymer science, creating a unique set of biomaterials for medical and pharmaceutical use, that can be easily extended into a manifold of biofunctional materials. Moreover, it will provide us with fresh tools and valuable insights to tackle the subtle relations between protein sequence and folding.
Summary
From a polymer chemistry perspective, the way in which nature produces its plethora of different proteins is a miracle of precision: the synthesis of each single molecule is directed by the sequence information chemically coded in DNA. The present state of recombinant DNA technology should in principle allow us to make genes that code for entirely new, very sophisticated amino acid polymers, which are chosen and designed by man to serve as new polymer materials. It has been shown that it is indeed possible to make use of the protein biosynthetic machinery and produce such de novo protein polymers, but it is not clear what their potentials are in terms of new materials with desired functionalities.
I propose to develop a new class of protein polymers, chosen such that they form nanostructured materials by triggered folding and multimolecular assembly. The plan is based on three innovative ideas: (i) each new protein polymer will be constructed from a limited set of selected amino acid sequences, called modules (hence the term modular protein polymers) (ii) new, high-yield fermentation strategies will be developed so that polymers will become available in significant quantities for evaluation and application; (iii) the design of modular protein polymers is carried out as a cyclic process in which sequence selection, construction of artificial genes, optimisation of fermentation for high yield, studying polymer folding and assembly, and modelling of the nanostructure by molecular simulation are all logically connected, allowing efficient selection of target sequences.
This project is a cross-road. It brings together biotechnology and polymer science, creating a unique set of biomaterials for medical and pharmaceutical use, that can be easily extended into a manifold of biofunctional materials. Moreover, it will provide us with fresh tools and valuable insights to tackle the subtle relations between protein sequence and folding.
Max ERC Funding
2 497 044 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-05-01, End date: 2016-04-30
Project acronym DINOPRO
Project From Protist to Proxy:
Dinoflagellates as signal carriers for climate and carbon cycling during past and present extreme climate transitions
Researcher (PI) Appy Sluijs
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITEIT UTRECHT
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE10, ERC-2010-StG_20091028
Summary I propose to develop and apply a novel method for the integrated reconstruction of past changes in carbon cycling and climate change. This method will be based on combining a well-established sensitive paleoclimate proxy with a recent discovery: the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C) of marine dinoflagellates (algae) and their organic fossils (dinocysts) reflects seawater carbonate chemistry, particularly pCO2. Biological (culture) experiments will lead to new insights in dinoflagellate carbon acquisition, and enable quantification of the effect of carbon speciation on dinoflagellate δ13C. The rises in CO2 concentrations during the last century, and at the termination of the last glacial period will be used to test and calibrate the new method. The δ13C of fossil dinoflagellate cysts will subsequently be used to reconstruct surface ocean pCO2 and ocean acidification during a past analogue of rapidly rising carbon dioxide concentrations, 55 million years ago. My research will shed new light on processes such as ocean acidification and the marine carbon cycle as a whole. Past analogues of rapid carbon injection can aid in the quantification of climate change and identification of vulnerable biological groups, critical to identify ‘tipping points’ in system Earth. The study of dinoflagellate carbon isotopes comprises the initiation of a new research field and will provide constraints on ocean acidification in the past and its consequences in the future.
Summary
I propose to develop and apply a novel method for the integrated reconstruction of past changes in carbon cycling and climate change. This method will be based on combining a well-established sensitive paleoclimate proxy with a recent discovery: the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C) of marine dinoflagellates (algae) and their organic fossils (dinocysts) reflects seawater carbonate chemistry, particularly pCO2. Biological (culture) experiments will lead to new insights in dinoflagellate carbon acquisition, and enable quantification of the effect of carbon speciation on dinoflagellate δ13C. The rises in CO2 concentrations during the last century, and at the termination of the last glacial period will be used to test and calibrate the new method. The δ13C of fossil dinoflagellate cysts will subsequently be used to reconstruct surface ocean pCO2 and ocean acidification during a past analogue of rapidly rising carbon dioxide concentrations, 55 million years ago. My research will shed new light on processes such as ocean acidification and the marine carbon cycle as a whole. Past analogues of rapid carbon injection can aid in the quantification of climate change and identification of vulnerable biological groups, critical to identify ‘tipping points’ in system Earth. The study of dinoflagellate carbon isotopes comprises the initiation of a new research field and will provide constraints on ocean acidification in the past and its consequences in the future.
Max ERC Funding
1 498 800 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-09-01, End date: 2016-08-31
Project acronym NEMINTEM
Project In-situ NanoElectrical Measurements in a Transmission Electron Microscope
Researcher (PI) Hendrik Willem Zandbergen
Host Institution (HI) TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT DELFT
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE5, ERC-2010-AdG_20100224
Summary Nanocharacterization techniques are becoming increasingly important. They help us to determine local atomic arrangements, element compositions as well as electronic structures. High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) is the most powerful and widely accepted technique. However, until recently in-situ HRTEM did not show sufficient resolution to image changes on the atomic scale. In the last five years, my group has pioneered advanced specimen holders towards in-situ HRTEM. We have leading expertise in obtaining the high resolution in a range of controllable environments: temperatures, pressures, and liquids. In addition, combinations with other types of parallel measurements were pioneered, such as in-situ low-noise electrical characterization. Clearly it is indeed possible to operate the HRTEM as a nanolaboratory. It allows to really see what one is measuring. With this proposal I want to realize the equipment and methodology to perform nano-electrical measurements of nanostructures in-situ in a HRTEM. The NanoElectrical Measurements in a Transmission Electron Microscope (NEMinTEM) will be applied to nanostructures of a range of materials. Furthermore the electron beam will be used to make well-controlled modifications of the nanostructure. The effects of these modifications on the electrical properties will be measured simultaneously. Semiconductor nanowires, graphene, metallic bridges and nanoelectrodes, and oxide multilayers will be studied, providing challenging examples with possible high-impact results It is to be expected that once NEMinTEM is mature, it will be applied to many more materials.
Summary
Nanocharacterization techniques are becoming increasingly important. They help us to determine local atomic arrangements, element compositions as well as electronic structures. High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) is the most powerful and widely accepted technique. However, until recently in-situ HRTEM did not show sufficient resolution to image changes on the atomic scale. In the last five years, my group has pioneered advanced specimen holders towards in-situ HRTEM. We have leading expertise in obtaining the high resolution in a range of controllable environments: temperatures, pressures, and liquids. In addition, combinations with other types of parallel measurements were pioneered, such as in-situ low-noise electrical characterization. Clearly it is indeed possible to operate the HRTEM as a nanolaboratory. It allows to really see what one is measuring. With this proposal I want to realize the equipment and methodology to perform nano-electrical measurements of nanostructures in-situ in a HRTEM. The NanoElectrical Measurements in a Transmission Electron Microscope (NEMinTEM) will be applied to nanostructures of a range of materials. Furthermore the electron beam will be used to make well-controlled modifications of the nanostructure. The effects of these modifications on the electrical properties will be measured simultaneously. Semiconductor nanowires, graphene, metallic bridges and nanoelectrodes, and oxide multilayers will be studied, providing challenging examples with possible high-impact results It is to be expected that once NEMinTEM is mature, it will be applied to many more materials.
Max ERC Funding
2 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-04-01, End date: 2017-03-31
Project acronym SUMOMAN
Project Supramolecular Cell Manipulation
Researcher (PI) Pascal Jonkheijm
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITEIT TWENTE
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE5, ERC-2010-StG_20091028
Summary Supramolecular chemistry and nanofabrication methods provide excellent prospect to construct reversible dynamic biological nanoplatforms employed for supramolecular cell manipulation (SUMOMAN) experiments. Making use of supramolecular chemistry is a rewarding task in developing functional materials and devices. Knowing the limitations involved in ordering proteins at different length scales will surely hasten the development of future applications, supramolecular nanobiology being the most prominent. The construction of synthetic supramolecular assemblies of proteins provides an excellent tool to fabricate organized bioactive components in the sub-micron regime at surfaces. Supramolecular nanobiology narrows the gap between chemical biology and bionanotechnology. The latter devises ways to construct molecular devices using biomacromolecules and it attempts to build molecular machines utilizing concepts seen in nature. In chemical biology new synthesis methods and strategies are developed and employed for the synthesis of compounds which are used as probes for the study of biological phenomena. Steadily improved synthetic procedures for site-specific modification of proteins have gained more control over structure and function of the proteins. However, applications of protein chips remain hampered by orientational and conformational aspects at the surface.
With the development of supramolecular bioactive nano-platforms on surfaces serving as a reversible dynamic interface to cells, the goal to study and manipulate cellular processes will come closer.
An innovative construction process of biological nanoarrays is proposed to study important fundamental aspects of cell biology. When such structured surfaces display a biological interface with nm resolution, a lengthscale inherently more relevant to biorecognition than microlengthscales, the communication through biomolecules with cellular receptors can be modulated with unprecedented spatial and temporal specificity.
Summary
Supramolecular chemistry and nanofabrication methods provide excellent prospect to construct reversible dynamic biological nanoplatforms employed for supramolecular cell manipulation (SUMOMAN) experiments. Making use of supramolecular chemistry is a rewarding task in developing functional materials and devices. Knowing the limitations involved in ordering proteins at different length scales will surely hasten the development of future applications, supramolecular nanobiology being the most prominent. The construction of synthetic supramolecular assemblies of proteins provides an excellent tool to fabricate organized bioactive components in the sub-micron regime at surfaces. Supramolecular nanobiology narrows the gap between chemical biology and bionanotechnology. The latter devises ways to construct molecular devices using biomacromolecules and it attempts to build molecular machines utilizing concepts seen in nature. In chemical biology new synthesis methods and strategies are developed and employed for the synthesis of compounds which are used as probes for the study of biological phenomena. Steadily improved synthetic procedures for site-specific modification of proteins have gained more control over structure and function of the proteins. However, applications of protein chips remain hampered by orientational and conformational aspects at the surface.
With the development of supramolecular bioactive nano-platforms on surfaces serving as a reversible dynamic interface to cells, the goal to study and manipulate cellular processes will come closer.
An innovative construction process of biological nanoarrays is proposed to study important fundamental aspects of cell biology. When such structured surfaces display a biological interface with nm resolution, a lengthscale inherently more relevant to biorecognition than microlengthscales, the communication through biomolecules with cellular receptors can be modulated with unprecedented spatial and temporal specificity.
Max ERC Funding
1 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-11-01, End date: 2015-10-31
