BATS

Date/Time:

Mar 12, 2021 - 12:00 PM

Location:

Hosts:

Bevin Engelward

Speaker:

Title:

Enzyme Evolution for Unnatural Porphyrin Synthesis

Abstract:

Porphyrins are cyclic molecules reliably created by biology with tunable catalytic and optical properties.However, chemical synthesis challenges limit their industrial application. We work to leverage Porphobilinogen Deaminase and synthetic chemistry to create unnatural porphyrins. Its promiscuity on synthetic substrates is mapped by an in vitro assay with optical and MS readouts. Evolution is pursued to alter PBGD promiscuity. Enzymatic synthesis of porphyrins can improve function and cost-effectiveness of revolutionary technologies.

Speaker:

Title:

Cephalopod Lenses: A Route to Bioinspired Optical Materials

Abstract:

Crystallin lens proteins have high solubility, self-assembly, and refractive index, which make them attractive candidates for engineering optical lens materials. In this project we produce crystallins from cephalopods, which have the highest-power lenses found in nature. Due to the scarcity of published crystallin sequences, we turn to computational design to splice variants with tailored structural properties. To date, no lenses have been produced with recombinant crystallins; this work will explore a route to more sustainable lens production.