Projects

The PETzyme project's objective is to develop an enzymatic technology for recycling polyethylene terephthalate (PET) wastes using free and immobilized PET hydrolases. We aim to obtain biocatalysts with enhanced thermostability, and we will take advantage of all recent works where protein engineering was used to improve the stability and catalytic efficiency of these enzymes, thus increasing the competitiveness of this recycling process.

Up-regulation of glycolytic flux (glucose to lactate conversion), also known as the “Warburg effect”, has been associated with 90% of cancers. We implemented a systems biology approach in order to improve the overall understanding of the “Warburg effect” as well as identifying drug targets within the glycolytic pathway.

SUSPHIRE aims to provide a sustainable, low-cost biomanufacturing platform for the commercial production of insect pheromones.

supplementary materials

Developing a placenta on a chip

This work aims to identify the biochemical pathways of THP-1 human monocytes infected by different Leishmania infantum clinical isolates from patients with either resistance or with TF outcome, using whole cell differential Mass Spectrometry proteomics. Network enrichment analysis was adopted to integrate the transcriptomics and the proteomic results of infected cells studies. Transferrin Receptor C and Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinase 3 were discovered as overexpressed proteins in THP-1 cells ...

The placenta remains the key to maternal diseases such as Pre-eclampsia (PE) and Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), however the pathophysiology of these disorders remains elusive. The aim of this study is to characterize the key proteomic variations between PE and IUGR, to better understand the pathoetiology of these diseases.Term placentas each were collected from PE, IUGR pregnancies, and age and BMI matched healthy controls. Quadrupole-orbitrap mass spectrometer was used in data dependent ...

Placental dysfunction has been associated with various pregnancy complications leading to both maternal and fetal death and long-term consequences, however, the placenta is one of the least studied organs within the human body. In this pilot study, protein signature of three healthy placentae was measured using label free quantification mass spectrometry. Each placenta was sampled in five sample sites and three sub-anatomical regions. Differentially expressed proteins were identified considering ...

The project "INtegrative COllaborative modeling in systems MEdicine" aims at connecting different heterogenous datasets and individual models within systems medicine.

Increasing temperature in the European wine producing regions is having a negative impact on this key sector. Climate change results in a lack of balance between technological and phenolic ripening of wine grapes and, as a consequence, alcohol increase in wines. This trend is of great concern for the European wine industry because it has a negative impact on wine quality, becomes a hurdle for international trade, and jeopardizes compatibility of moderate wine consumption with a healthy lifestyle. ...

The main idea of MIX-UP (MIXed plastics biodegradation and UPcycling using microbial communities) is to showcase a novel approach for plastic recycling and therefore addresses one of the greatest challenges of our time: the establishment of a circular (bio)-economy for plastics. The continuing demand for plastic products, the lack of appropriate recycling and the ubiquitous pollution of the environment with plastic waste pose a global challenge. An ambitious vision and considerable efforts are ...

Using standard systems biology methodologies a 14-compartment dynamic model was developed for the Corona virus epidemic. The model predicts that: (i) it will be impossible to limit lockdown intensity such that sufficient herd immunity develops for this epidemic to die down, (ii) the death toll from the SARS-CoV-2 virus decreases very strongly with increasing intensity of the lockdown, but (iii) the duration of the epidemic increases at first with that intensity and then decreases again, such that ...

In this proposal, we aim the sequential multivalorization of apple pomace towards the extraction of polyphenolics, the production of enzymes and its biological conversion into acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE)

IMOMESIC - Integrating Modelling of Metabolism and Signalling towards an Application in Liver Cancer

One of the most challenging questions in cancer research is currently the interconnection of metabolism and signalling. An understanding of mechanisms that facilitate the physiological shift towards a proliferative metabolism in cancer cells is considered a major upcoming topic in oncology and is a key activity for future drug development. Due to the complexity of interrelations, a systems biology ...

Storage of thermophysical properties (e.g. density, viscosity, thermodynamic activity of water, conductivity) using Chemical Markup Language (CML).

This project bundles information about COVID-19 related studies and tools in Germany. It intends to provide an information hub for the different initiatives, their aims, their processes, standards and study protocols, as well as their available data and metadata. It is initiated by the German National Research Data Infrastructure for Personal Health Data (nfdi4health), a consortium that plans to establish a concept for a federated research data infrastructure for personal health data in Germany. ...

What is PlaSMo? PlaSMo stands for Plant Systems-biology Modelling Ensuring the achievements of yesterday's Mathematical Modellers will be available for the Systems Biologists of tomorrow.

Our aims

To identify plant mathematical models useful to the UK plant systems biology community, which are currently in a variety of legacy formats and in danger of being lost

To represent these models in a declarative XML-based format, which is closer to the systems biology standard SBML To evaluate the behaviour ...

This project aims to characterise the mechanisms through which microRNAs and small non-coding RNAs act to regulate cellular processes focusing on Naïve CD4 T cell activation and viral replication - namely HIV - and to explore their potential use as a therapeutic co-adjuvant agents or targets.