Marine microbes creating green waves in industry
7th July 2009
New technology designed to analyse large numbers of novel marine
microbes could lead to more efficient and greener ways to
manufacture new drugs for conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes,
flu and other viruses, as well as improving the manufacture of
other products such as agrochemicals.
Researchers at PML and the Heriot-Watt University, in collaboration
with Edinburgh based company Ingenza Ltd., are searching for new
enzymes for use as manufacturing tools in the pharmaceutical and
agrochemical industries. The research project, funded by the
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences
Research Council (BBSRC) and the Technology Strategy Board (TSB),
uses biochemical techniques to identify potentially useful enzymes
in microbes that are found in the sea.
Sohail Ali, Biotechnologist at PML commented: "Working with
Ingenza and the other partners has allowed PML to develop a robust
programme of research in biocatalysis. Soemthing which would not
have been possible without the support of the BBSRC."
This work brings important expertise from industry together with
academic researchers. The value in this approach is to take
specific knowledge and expertise in biochemistry and molecular
biology, coupled with novel and diverse marine microbes, right
through to high-yielding, scalable and economic manufacturing
processes. These processes use enzyme catalysts from the marine
microbes, which are greener and cleaner than existing manufacturing
methods.
Dr Robert Speight, from Ingenza Ltd, explained: "We are using
biology in our chemical processes to come up with improved
manufacturing routes. We are taking advantage of the natural
diversity of marine organisms that has arisen through evolution in
different environments and coupling that with high-tech screening
systems. We are looking to find naturally occurring microbes that
already have a built-in capacity to do the chemical reactions we
want to perform in industry. There is every possibility of
developing more efficient and sustainable manufacturing solutions -
for pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals in particular - as a result
of this search."
Microorganisms account for more than 95 per cent of ocean
biomass but relatively little is really known about them and their
potential applications. The research team's search is for
industrially relevant enzymes which will reduce waste and increase
productivity in the manufacture of drugs and agrochemicals. The
enzymes they seek have the ability to convert compounds that would
have previously been waste products in the manufacturing process,
into the desired product, therefore increasing the efficiency of
the process.
Professor Mark Keane, from Heriot-Watt University, said: "Our
approach is to look for microbes which can promote the chemical
reactions that we want to use in manufacturing. We then treat the
microbes under conditions where they produce the key enzymes in
higher yield, which we finally purify. The enzymes then undergo
systematic testing to evaluate their activity, which enables us to
pinpoint candidates that exhibit the best performance."
"We are now identifying microbes with a type of enzyme called an
amine oxidase. This could be key to cheaper, more efficient and
sustainable process in the synthesis of valuable chemicals by both
the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries."
Commenting on the findings, BBSRC Chief Executive Professor Doug
Kell, said: “Green and White biotechnologies are going to be an
increasingly important part of the manufacturing landscape. Looking
to biological systems that have been finely tuned by evolution to
solve problems, rather than starting from scratch every time, might
seem an obvious thing to do. It does however, in many cases,
require the bringing together of particular niche expertise. The
value of this collaboration is in the coincidence of knowledge and
expertise from academia with the uniquely important business of
synthesising a product on a large scale.
"What the outcomes of this project will offer us is the chance
to have a significant impact on the sustainability of
pharmaceutical and biochemicals production as we move from
oil-based to photosynthesis-derived chemistry."
The research is featured in the summer issue of the new look
Business,
the BBSRC research highlights magazine.