Pipeline

SYNBIOCHEM PIPELINE

The SYNBIOCHEM Centre “Bio-Foundry” has established DESIGN, BUILD, TEST platforms supported by integrated DATA sharing and Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI), to transform fine and speciality chemicals production.

DESIGN – BUILD – TEST – LEARN

The SYNBIOCHEM platforms have been integrated into a D/B/T/L pipeline to access new chemical space, generate new chemical diversity and high-level production through the:

DESIGN of novel enzymes/pathways/chassis;
BUILD of multiple pathways in host chassis using automated rapid assembly and…
TEST/evaluation using advanced optimised ultra high-throughput (HTP) screening and analytical methods.
LEARN methods then inform re-design and optimisation.

The SYNBIOCHEM pipeline is highlighted in the 2018 publication: Communications Biology.

The pipeline capabilities have now been further optimised for rapid prototyping of microbial production strains for the biomanufacture of diverse materials monomers with scale up to g/l (2020: Metab. Eng.).

DESIGN

The design platform is responsible for the modelling and design of enzyme and regulatory elements, pathway inference and genome-scale modelling. We have developed a number of software tools to help explore chemical space, select enzymes and design reusable synthetic biology parts.

BUILD

This platform is responsible for production of catalytic, regulatory and structural parts, assembly into pathways, circuits and scaffolds and engineering of microbial chassis for efficient expression and high product yield.

TEST

State-of-the-art instruments allow tracking and assaying of metabolites, proteins, enzymes, pathways, chassis and strains emanating from the BUILD platform suing a range of targeted and untargeted approaches.

LEARN

Tracking and curation of sample data requires an end-to-end research data management platform. The Centre uses a series of tools including electronic lab notebooks, data storage systems and data tracking solutions.

FACILITIES

SYNBIOCHEM is extremely well equipped with high throughput robotics, mass spectrometry, picodroplet microfluidics, fermentation platforms and a wide range of design tools.

RRI

The RRI group seeks to initiate early dialogue, provide expertise, guidance and training in responsible governance of SynBio innovation, and foster public engagement and training for the research community.