BATS

Date/Time:

Nov 1, 2019 - 12:00 PM

Location:

Hosts:

Bevin Engelward

Speaker:

Title:

Orthogonal Prokaryotic Transcription as a Platform for Antibiotic Screening

Abstract:

Bacterial RNA polymerases (RNAPs) are a promising target for antibiotics. However, screening is often hampered by culture conditions, generation time, biosafety considerations, and poorly understood mechanisms of action. We propose an orthogonal, interspecies transcription system for the screening of large drug libraries against functional RNAPs from diverse, clinically relevant bacteria in E. coli. As well as providing a direct mechanism of action, this platform may enable the discovery of narrow spectrum RNAP inhibitors.

Speaker:

Title:

Engineering a Mammalian Toggle Switch that Maintains Function Over Long Time Scales

Abstract:

Cell therapies have yielded breakthrough cures in cancer and genetic diseases. Synthetic biological circuits may enable sophisticated cell therapies that respond to patient biomarkers and inputs from clinicians. However, epigenetic silencing causes classic mammalian genetic circuits to lose function within a few weeks, impeding applications in cell therapies. Here, I will discuss the development of a mammalian toggle switch that remains functional over long time scales.