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news.UK-based Almac biocatalysis has secured a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) programme with University College London (UCL) aimed at metagenomics and novel enzyme discovery.
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Almac and the departments of Biochemical Engineering and Chemistry at UCL are set to complete the R&D work with high level input from professors John Ward and Helen Hailes in the field of biocatalyst discovery and application.
UCL Department of Biochemical Engineering professor John Ward said that the project will see internal capabilities further developed with true industrial needs in their vision.
Most of the enzymes used in biocatalysis are derived from microbial sources and has a limitation in its number that is present in a given enzyme class which prescribes both the substrate range and the stereoselectivity observed for a desired chemical transformation.
The work which was carried out at UCL allowed a series of metagenomes to be obtained from various unusual sources.
The bioinformatic tools developed by John Ward with Prof Christine Orengo of the Structural and Molecular Biology department at UCL will help the concerned metagenomes to be mined for enzymes usable in both synthetic chemistry and synthetic biology projects.
Almac Biocatalysis & Isotope Chemistry head Tom Moody said that the need for more diverse enzymes has never been greater and this research programme further emphasises Almac’s commitment to UK research and to biocatalysis development.
"The project will mainly focus on transaminase and cytochrome P450s enzymes," Moody added.
"We will identify, clone and express these enzymes before carrying out extensive screening against panels of ‘typical’ pharmaceutical and fine chemical substrates."