Bioprocess engineering

The main advantage of biocatalysis is its excellent regiospecificity and stereospecificity. Biocatalysts have proven to be efficient catalysts for reactions that otherwise require harsh reaction conditions, such as C-H hydroxylation. In general, biocatalysts can be used as enzymes in cell-free systems or as the whole cell catalyst. Cell-free systems are often used for one-step biotransformations, while whole-cell systems are used for fermentation or when cofactor regeneration is required.

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Metabolomics

The discovery of novel secondary metabolites and the activation of silent gene clusters in bacteria using the "one strain many compounds" approach by applying metabolomics screening strategies is the focus of this research area.

Genome Mining

In 2004, a novel heme thiolate peroxidase was discovered in the basidiomycete Agrocybe aegerita that naturally catalyzes a broad range of oxidative transformations.This novel enzyme type, classified as nonspecific peroxygenases (UPOs, EC 1.11.2.1), is found throughout the fungal kingdom and combines the catalytic cycle of heme peroxidases with the "peroxide shunt" of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYPs). In general, promiscuous biocatalysts transfer one oxygen atom from hydrogen peroxide to numerous substrates, making them particularly promising for applications involving the selective oxyfunctionalization of organic molecules.

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The goal of this project is to apply an algorithm to optimize an in vitro enzyme cascade. The model cascade used in this study produces terpenes, a class of natural products with a variety of applications. To find the optimal conditions for the whole reaction cascade, an iterative approach is applied, generating information about the system in the laboratory and proposing new reaction conditions by kriging.

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