Team:Caltech

From 2008.igem.org

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[[Image:Gut_flora_color.png|right|thumb|200px|Engineered gut flora]]
[[Image:Gut_flora_color.png|right|thumb|200px|Engineered gut flora]]
We aim to engineer a probiotic bacterium to improve its medical applications. Our work focuses on four main areas: (1) pathogen defense, either by expression of pathogen-specific bacteriophage or by targeted bursts of reactive oxygen species; (2) vitamin over-expression and delivery; (3) treatment of lactose intolerance, by preferentially metabolizing lactose and funneling it to vitamin production; and (4) regulation of these three treatment functions to produce subpopulations specialized for each function.
We aim to engineer a probiotic bacterium to improve its medical applications. Our work focuses on four main areas: (1) pathogen defense, either by expression of pathogen-specific bacteriophage or by targeted bursts of reactive oxygen species; (2) vitamin over-expression and delivery; (3) treatment of lactose intolerance, by preferentially metabolizing lactose and funneling it to vitamin production; and (4) regulation of these three treatment functions to produce subpopulations specialized for each function.
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==Why engineer gut microbes?==
==Why engineer gut microbes?==
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===Nissle 1917: Probiotic, commercially available ''E. coli''===
===Nissle 1917: Probiotic, commercially available ''E. coli''===
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[[Image:packshot_mutaflor.jpg|thumb|Mutaflor - q commercially available probiotic ''E. coli'' strain Nissle 1917]]
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For more details, please see our [[Team:Caltech/Project|project]] page.
For more details, please see our [[Team:Caltech/Project|project]] page.
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The big idea

Engineered gut flora

We aim to engineer a probiotic bacterium to improve its medical applications. Our work focuses on four main areas: (1) pathogen defense, either by expression of pathogen-specific bacteriophage or by targeted bursts of reactive oxygen species; (2) vitamin over-expression and delivery; (3) treatment of lactose intolerance, by preferentially metabolizing lactose and funneling it to vitamin production; and (4) regulation of these three treatment functions to produce subpopulations specialized for each function.

Why engineer gut microbes?

The large intestine: an ideal bioreactor

Probiotic bacteria and other natural examples

Nissle 1917: Probiotic, commercially available E. coli

Mutaflor - q commercially available probiotic E. coli strain Nissle 1917

For more details, please see our project page.