Difference between revisions of "Team:UAlberta/Description"

m
 
(38 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown)
Line 5: Line 5:
 
     <meta charset="utf-8">
 
     <meta charset="utf-8">
 
     <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
 
     <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
    <title>iGEM 2017 UAlberta</title>
 
    <meta name="description" content="iGEM 2017 University of ALberta">
 
    <meta name="keywords" content="UAlberta, iGEM">
 
    <meta name="author" content="David Herczeg">
 
 
    <style>
 
      #ua-home {
 
        background: url('http://i.imgur.com/pTHJX4J.jpg');
 
        background-size: cover;
 
        background-position: center;
 
        background-attachment: fixed;
 
        background-repeat: no-repeat;
 
        width: auto;
 
        height: auto;
 
      }
 
      #ua-home-about .row {
 
        background-color: transparent;
 
      }
 
    </style>
 
 
   </head>
 
   </head>
   <body>  
+
   <body>
     <div id="ua-home" class="text-center">
+
     <div id="ua-description" class="background">
       <div class="overlay" style="margin-top: -12px; margin-bottom: -20px;">
+
       <div class="overlay">
        <div class="content">
+
          <h1>Welcome to team: <strong>UAlberta</strong></h1>
+
          <p class="common">University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada</p>
+
          <a href="#ua-home-about" class="fa fa-angle-down smooth"></a>
+
        </div>
+
 
       </div>
 
       </div>
 
     </div>
 
     </div>
   
+
     <div id="ua-research-content">
     <div id="ua-home-about">
+
 
       <div class="container">
 
       <div class="container">
 
         <div class="row">
 
         <div class="row">
          <div class="col-lg-2">
+
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2017/5/54/T--UAlberta--Overview.png" width="70%"></p>
            <img src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/27/Seal_of_the_University_of_Alberta.gif" class="img-responsive" height="400px" width="400px">
+
           <h2>What is RISE?</h2>
          </div>
+
          <p>The Recombinant Protein Interaction Screening and Enrichment (RISE) system is a tool designed to provide an easily measurable and quantifiable protein screening process. Based upon a modified BACTH system and directed evolution, the RISE system utilizes buoyancy as a readily observable readout of the relative strength of protein-protein interactions that also facilitates separation of desirable variants from undesirable ones.</p>
           <div class="col-lg-10">
+
          <h3>Why did we develop RISE?</h3>
            <div class="about-text">
+
          <p>Existing screening methods, such as phage display and the yeast 2-hybrid system, have several drawbacks. They can be costly both in terms of time and money, and don’t have readily observable read outs. We wanted to improve on these techniques to provide a screening method that is easily observable and efficient. An added advantage of the RISE system is that it can be easily automated so that a machine would select for the most buoyant bacteria from the top of each culture and perform the enrichment process independently.</p>
              <div class="section-title">
+
          <h3>How does it work? </h3>
                <h4>Our Project</h4>
+
          <p>The RISE system uses buoyancy as an indicator of protein-protein interaction strength. This buoyancy phenotype allows for a simple enrichment system, where the most buoyant bacteria, that is those expressing the strongest protein-protein interactions, can be easily selected at each round of enrichment since they will be at the uppermost part of the culture. The enrichment process – that is, the repeated re-culturing of the top layer of the culture – is meant to weed out false positives. This process ultimately results in selection for the strongest interactions over multiple generations of cell culture growth</p>
                <h2>Brief description</h2>
+
          <h3>Protein interactions → buoyancy?</h3>
                <hr>
+
          <p>To provide a reliable read out of protein-protein interaction strength, we have employed the use of a modified BACTH system. In the BACTH system the two subunits of adenylate cyclase, T25 and T18, are fused to two proteins of interest. When the proteins interact, T18 and T25 are brought together, re-establishing adenylate cyclase activity and therefore resuming cAMP production. The newly synthesized cAMP will then bind to the catabolite activator protein (CAP), which in turn upregulates the transcription of downstream genes.</p>
                <div class="clearfix"></div>
+
          <h3>Engineering BACTH</h3>
              </div>
+
          <p>The commercially available BACTH kit consists of the T25 and T18 subunits on two separate plasmids. This posed an issue for our project, as increased plasmid number has an inverse relationship with transformation efficiency. In order to increase our cloning success, we have engineered a simplified BACTH system in which both subunits are contained in a single plasmid.</p>
              <p class="common">Team UAlberta aims to develop a buoyancy-based screening system for protein-protein interactions in <i>Escherichia coli</i>. This system relies on a bacterial two-hybrid system (BACTH) where the reconstitution of the T18 and T25 domains of adenylate cyclase, due to the interaction between two proteins fused to the two domains, will restore the activity of the adenylate cyclase depending on the strength of the protein-protein interaction. Reconstitution of adenylate cyclase restores the production of cAMP, which will then upregulate a cluster of genes controlling gas vesicle production, therefore conferring buoyancy to <i>E. coli </i>cells. Thus, the observed buoyancy in bacteria is ultimately dependent on the strength of the protein-protein interaction. The purpose of this system is to utilize buoyancy to physically separate bacteria expressing successful protein interactions from unsuccessful variants. Team UAlberta will first test and characterize the system using pairs of proteins with well-characterized interactions, such as leucine zippers. After initial testing, Team UAlberta aims to use the system in conjunction with directed evolution to engineer a potent peptide inhibitor of NHERF2, a target that has been implicated with breast cancer.</p>
+
          <h3>Gvp 3.0</h3>
           </div>
+
          <p>Gvp 3.0 is a gene cluster encoding repeats of gas vesicle proteins gvp A and gvp C. When transcribed, gvp A and gvp C combineto form gas vesicles, conferring buoyancy to the bacterial cell.</p>
           </div>
+
           <h3>How can RISE be used?</h3>
 +
          <p>The RISE system has a diverse range of applications:</p>
 +
          <ul>
 +
            <li>Protein-based drug development</li>
 +
            <li>Imaging (developing peptides that bind to proteins in body- attach radioisotope domain as marker)</li>
 +
            <li>Foundational research</li>
 +
           </ul>
 
         </div>
 
         </div>
 
       </div>
 
       </div>

Latest revision as of 03:57, 2 November 2017

What is RISE?

The Recombinant Protein Interaction Screening and Enrichment (RISE) system is a tool designed to provide an easily measurable and quantifiable protein screening process. Based upon a modified BACTH system and directed evolution, the RISE system utilizes buoyancy as a readily observable readout of the relative strength of protein-protein interactions that also facilitates separation of desirable variants from undesirable ones.

Why did we develop RISE?

Existing screening methods, such as phage display and the yeast 2-hybrid system, have several drawbacks. They can be costly both in terms of time and money, and don’t have readily observable read outs. We wanted to improve on these techniques to provide a screening method that is easily observable and efficient. An added advantage of the RISE system is that it can be easily automated so that a machine would select for the most buoyant bacteria from the top of each culture and perform the enrichment process independently.

How does it work?

The RISE system uses buoyancy as an indicator of protein-protein interaction strength. This buoyancy phenotype allows for a simple enrichment system, where the most buoyant bacteria, that is those expressing the strongest protein-protein interactions, can be easily selected at each round of enrichment since they will be at the uppermost part of the culture. The enrichment process – that is, the repeated re-culturing of the top layer of the culture – is meant to weed out false positives. This process ultimately results in selection for the strongest interactions over multiple generations of cell culture growth

Protein interactions → buoyancy?

To provide a reliable read out of protein-protein interaction strength, we have employed the use of a modified BACTH system. In the BACTH system the two subunits of adenylate cyclase, T25 and T18, are fused to two proteins of interest. When the proteins interact, T18 and T25 are brought together, re-establishing adenylate cyclase activity and therefore resuming cAMP production. The newly synthesized cAMP will then bind to the catabolite activator protein (CAP), which in turn upregulates the transcription of downstream genes.

Engineering BACTH

The commercially available BACTH kit consists of the T25 and T18 subunits on two separate plasmids. This posed an issue for our project, as increased plasmid number has an inverse relationship with transformation efficiency. In order to increase our cloning success, we have engineered a simplified BACTH system in which both subunits are contained in a single plasmid.

Gvp 3.0

Gvp 3.0 is a gene cluster encoding repeats of gas vesicle proteins gvp A and gvp C. When transcribed, gvp A and gvp C combineto form gas vesicles, conferring buoyancy to the bacterial cell.

How can RISE be used?

The RISE system has a diverse range of applications:

  • Protein-based drug development
  • Imaging (developing peptides that bind to proteins in body- attach radioisotope domain as marker)
  • Foundational research

Special thanks to all our sponsors!

Social Media

igem.ualberta@gmail.com