Difference between revisions of "Team:OLS Canmore AB CA/Description"

 
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<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Collaborations"><li>COLLABORATIONS</li></a>
 
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<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Practice"><li>HUMAN PRACTICES</li></a>
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<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Practices"><li>HUMAN PRACTICES</li></a>
  
 
<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Safety"><li>SAFETY</li></a>
 
<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Safety"><li>SAFETY</li></a>
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<a href="https://2015.igem.org/Team:OLS_Canmore_AB_CA/Faith"><li>FAITH</li></a>
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<h2><center><b>Description</b></center></h2>
  
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<h1><b>Project Description</b></h1>
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      <td><p>This year our team chose to tackle the hairy global issue of keratin waste build-up. We are working to solve this issue by constructing a Keratinase-expressing E. coli system that will break down the keratin protein, leading to the rapid degradation of both hair and feathers in industrial waste streams.
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The reason that both hair and feathers present waste-management problems is that they are made up of the same protein: keratin. Keratin is one of the strongest proteins found in nature due to its hydrogen bonds, disulphide bonds, and its tightly wrapped helixes (1), or parallel sheets of polypeptide chains with amino acids (3). Keratinase is a proteolytic enzyme that is capable of breaking the strong bonds that hold keratin together. In nature, Keratinases are expressed in a variety of organisms, including bacteria and fungi, which exist in many different habitats. These habitats include Antarctic soils, soybean waste, Mediterranean Sea, solfataric muds, polluted rivers, and hot springs (2). The current understanding of Keratinase shows the Bacillus genera to be the most prominent natural Keratinase producers (2).</p></td>
    <td align="justify"><p>This year our team chose to tackle the hairy global problem of keratin waste build-up. We are working to solve this issue by constructing a keratinase-expressing E. coli system that will break down the keratin protein, leading to the rapid degradation of both hair and feathers in industrial waste streams. </p></td>
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<tr><td><p>The reason that both hair and feathers present waste-management problems is that they are made up of the same protein: keratin. Keratin is one of the strongest proteins found in nature due to its hydrogen bonds, disulphide bonds, and its tightly wrapped helixes (1), or parallel sheets of polypeptide chains with amino acids (3). Keratinase is a proteolytic enzyme that is capable of breaking the strong bonds that hold keratin together. In nature, keratinases are expressed in a variety of organisms, including bacteria and fungi, which exist in many different habitats. These habitats include Antarctic soils, soybean waste, Mediterranean Sea, solfataric muds, polluted rivers, and hot springs (2). The current understanding of keratinase shows the Bacillus genera to be the most prominent natural Keratanase producers (2).</p></td></tr>
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      <td align="center"><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/9/95/OLS-Feathers-ProjectDes.png" width="375px" height="416px" rotate="90"/><p font-size="10px">Picture from http://blogs.inquirer.net/insidescience/2008/08/01/filipino-scientist-finds-good-use-for-chicken-feathers/</p><p>&nbsp;</p>
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      <img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/a/a8/OLS-Hair-ProjectDes.png" width="375" height="263px"/><p font-size="10px">Picture from http://slocumbros.com/category/news/ and the San Antonio Water System</p>
<td><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/9/95/OLS-Feathers-ProjectDes.png" width="300px" height="416px"/><p font-size="10px">Picture from http://blogs.inquirer.net/insidescience/2008/08/01/filipino-scientist-finds-good-use-for-chicken-feathers/</p></td>
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<td><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/a/a8/OLS-Hair-ProjectDes.png" width="375" height="263px"/><p font-size="10px">Picture from http://slocumbros.com/category/news/ and the San Antonio Water System</p></td>
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<tr><td><p>Our inspiration to tackle the issue of hair and feather build came from a cartoon that was published in our local paper entitled “The Epic Poo Race”. This cartoon was published as a funny way to educate the public about the issue that was affecting our town. Hair being flushed into wastewater treatment systems was getting tangled and trapped to the point of restricting the flow of sewage.</p></td></tr>
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      <td><p>Our inspiration to tackle the issue of hair and feather build came from a cartoon that was published in our local paper entitled “The Epic Poo Race”. This cartoon was published as a funny way to educate the public about the issue that was effecting our town. Hair being flushed into wastewater treatment systems was getting tangled and trapped to the point of restricting the flow of sewage.</p></td>
<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/7/71/OLS-Picture5-ProjectDes.png" width="500" height="670px"align="center"/>
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<p font-size="10px" align="center">Photo courtesy of the Town of Canmore</p>
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      <td align="center"><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/7/71/OLS-Picture5-ProjectDes.png" width="511" height="605" />
<tr><td><p>From visiting our local waste water treatment plant we learnt the following.  These build-ups of hair can be so damaging that they can stop pumps from working leading to backup, blockages, and the breakage of many wastewater treatment components costing millions in repairs. Perhaps the worst thing about this issue is how the hair is currently removed from the waste treatment facilities. These clogs, no matter their size, must be removed manually by the unlucky worker given this terrible task. Our team knew there must be a better way to tackle this problem. Of course, we thought that synthetic biology would be the perfect answer to this problem. </p></td></tr>
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<p font-size="10px" align="center">Photo courtesy of the Town of Canmore</p><br></td>
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<td><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/4/4b/OLS-Picture2-ProjectDes.png">
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<p font-size="10px">Team member Alina Arvisais at the Canmore Waste Water Treatment Plant</p></td>
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      <td><p>From visiting our local waste water treatment plant we learnt that these build-ups of hair can be so damaging that they can stop pumps from working leading to backup in waste, blockages, and the breaking of many wastewater treatment equipment costing millions in repairs. Perhaps the worst thing about this issue is how the hair is currently removed from the waste treatment facilities. These clogs, no matter their size, must be removed manually by the unlucky worker given the task. Our team knew there must be a better way to tackle this problem. Of course, we thought that synthetic biology would be the perfect answer to this problem.</p>
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      </td>
<tr><td><p>Further research into keratin problem led to our discovery of the issue of feather waste accumulation in the poultry industry. Currently, 8.8 billion tones of feather waste is produced throughout the world each year (1).  Feathers take 5 to 7 years to break down naturally (1), and significant costs are associated with the more efficient methods to dispose of the feather waste.
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Most commonly, feathers are disposed of by burning the waste, which releases harmful pollutants, creates foul odours, can lead to the contamination of livestock and plants in surrounding areas (8).  Burying the waste is an alternative method of disposal, which leads to harmful leachate, thus leaving the surrounding land compromised (8). Since feathers are a good source of protein, turning the feather waste product into animal feed or fertilizer is an exciting option, though this process is often too cost-prohibitive and time consuming (8).  Furthermore, the products produced are not of high quality (8). Keratin waste also has the potential be turned into other useful products such as biodegradable plastics (4) Fertilizer (5) Detergents (6) and pharmaceuticals (7) but the methods prove to be expensive and therefore, are under-utilized.
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      <td><img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/4/4b/OLS-Picture2-ProjectDes.png">
<tr><td<p>Designing a biological system that can produce functional keratinase at a low cost and high output rate provides an opportunity for real improvement on the current reality of keratin waste management. Aside from the industrial applications already discussed, keratinases can have expanded application value in the cosmetic industry; as a natural alternative to caustic drain cleaner products; in the leather production industry, to assist in dehairing hides; or as an animal feed supplement, allowing livestock to receive more nutrients from their food (2).</p></td></tr>
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      <p font-size="10px" align="center">Team member Alina Arvisais at the Canmore Waste Water Treatment Plant</p></td>
<tr><td<p font-size="12px"><b>Citations:</b>  
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<ul>
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<li>(1) Poultry News, Health, Welfare, Diseases, Markets and Econ, 2009</li>
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      <td><p>Designing a biological system that can produce functional Keratinase at a low cost and high output rate provides an opportunity for real improvement in the current reality of keratin waste management. Aside from the industrial applications already discussed, Keratinases can have expanded application value in the cosmetic industry; as a natural alternative to caustic drain cleaner products; in the leather production industry, to assist in dehairing hides; or as an animal feed supplement, allowing livestock to receive more nutrients from their food (2).
<li>(2) Tulasi Satyanarayana, Jennifer Littlechild, Yutaka Kawarabayasi, Thermophilic Microbes in Environmental and Industrial Biotechnology, 2013, Springer. </li>
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            <p>&nbsp;</p>  
<li>(3) "keratin". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 17 Sep. 2015 <http://www.britannica.com/science/keratin>.</li>
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        <p font-size="12px"><strong>Citations:</strong>
<li>(4) Jin, E., Reddy, N., Zhu, Z., & Yang, Y. (2011). Graft polymerization of native chicken feathers for thermoplastic applications. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 59(5), 1729-1738.</li>
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        <ul>
<li>(5) Hadas, A., & Kautsky, L. (1994). Feather meal, a semi-slow-release nitrogen fertilizer for organic farming.Fertilizer research, 38(2), 165-170.</li>
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          <li>(1) Poultry News, Health, Welfare, Diseases, Markets and Econ, 2009</li>
<li>(6) Riffel, A., Lucas, F., Heeb, P., & Brandelli, A. (2003). Characterization of a new keratinolytic bacterium that completely degrades native feather keratin. Archives of Microbiology, 179(4), 258-265.</li>
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          <li>(2) Tulasi Satyanarayana, Jennifer Littlechild, Yutaka Kawarabayasi, Thermophilic Microbes in Environmental and Industrial Biotechnology, 2013, Springer.</li>
<li>(7) Tiwary, E., & Gupta, R. (2010). Extracellular expression of keratinase from Bacillus licheniformis ER-15 in Escherichia coli. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 58(14), 8380-8385. </li>
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          <li>(3) "keratin". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 17 Sep. 2015.</li>
<li>(8) El-Nagar, K., Saleh, S. M., & Ramadan, A. R. (2006). Utilization of feather waste to improve the properties of the Egyptian cotton fabrics. Jour. of Textile and Apparel Technology and Management, 2, 1-12.</li>
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          <li>(4) Jin, E., Reddy, N., Zhu, Z., &amp; Yang, Y. (2011). Graft polymerization of native chicken feathers for thermoplastic applications. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 59(5), 1729-1738.</li>
</ul>
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          <li>(5) Hadas, A., &amp; Kautsky, L. (1994). Feather meal, a semi-slow-release nitrogen fertilizer for organic farming.Fertilizer research, 38(2), 165-170.</li>
</p></td></tr>
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          <li>(6) Riffel, A., Lucas, F., Heeb, P., &amp; Brandelli, A. (2003). Characterization of a new keratinolytic bacterium that completely degrades native feather keratin. Archives of Microbiology, 179(4), 258-265.</li>
 +
          <li>(7) Tiwary, E., &amp; Gupta, R. (2010). Extracellular Expression of Keratinase from Bacillus licheniformis ER-15 in Escherichia coli. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 58(14), 8380-8385.</li>
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          <li>(8) El-Nagar, K., Saleh, S. M., &amp; Ramadan, A. R. (2006). Utilization of feather waste to improve the properties of the Egyptian cotton fabrics. Jour. of Textile and Apparel Technology and Management, 2, 1-12.</li>
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Latest revision as of 00:01, 19 September 2015

Description

This year our team chose to tackle the hairy global issue of keratin waste build-up. We are working to solve this issue by constructing a Keratinase-expressing E. coli system that will break down the keratin protein, leading to the rapid degradation of both hair and feathers in industrial waste streams. The reason that both hair and feathers present waste-management problems is that they are made up of the same protein: keratin. Keratin is one of the strongest proteins found in nature due to its hydrogen bonds, disulphide bonds, and its tightly wrapped helixes (1), or parallel sheets of polypeptide chains with amino acids (3). Keratinase is a proteolytic enzyme that is capable of breaking the strong bonds that hold keratin together. In nature, Keratinases are expressed in a variety of organisms, including bacteria and fungi, which exist in many different habitats. These habitats include Antarctic soils, soybean waste, Mediterranean Sea, solfataric muds, polluted rivers, and hot springs (2). The current understanding of Keratinase shows the Bacillus genera to be the most prominent natural Keratinase producers (2).

Picture from http://blogs.inquirer.net/insidescience/2008/08/01/filipino-scientist-finds-good-use-for-chicken-feathers/

 

Picture from http://slocumbros.com/category/news/ and the San Antonio Water System

Our inspiration to tackle the issue of hair and feather build came from a cartoon that was published in our local paper entitled “The Epic Poo Race”. This cartoon was published as a funny way to educate the public about the issue that was effecting our town. Hair being flushed into wastewater treatment systems was getting tangled and trapped to the point of restricting the flow of sewage.

Photo courtesy of the Town of Canmore


From visiting our local waste water treatment plant we learnt that these build-ups of hair can be so damaging that they can stop pumps from working leading to backup in waste, blockages, and the breaking of many wastewater treatment equipment costing millions in repairs. Perhaps the worst thing about this issue is how the hair is currently removed from the waste treatment facilities. These clogs, no matter their size, must be removed manually by the unlucky worker given the task. Our team knew there must be a better way to tackle this problem. Of course, we thought that synthetic biology would be the perfect answer to this problem.

Team member Alina Arvisais at the Canmore Waste Water Treatment Plant

Designing a biological system that can produce functional Keratinase at a low cost and high output rate provides an opportunity for real improvement in the current reality of keratin waste management. Aside from the industrial applications already discussed, Keratinases can have expanded application value in the cosmetic industry; as a natural alternative to caustic drain cleaner products; in the leather production industry, to assist in dehairing hides; or as an animal feed supplement, allowing livestock to receive more nutrients from their food (2).

 

Citations:

  • (1) Poultry News, Health, Welfare, Diseases, Markets and Econ, 2009
  • (2) Tulasi Satyanarayana, Jennifer Littlechild, Yutaka Kawarabayasi, Thermophilic Microbes in Environmental and Industrial Biotechnology, 2013, Springer.
  • (3) "keratin". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 17 Sep. 2015.
  • (4) Jin, E., Reddy, N., Zhu, Z., & Yang, Y. (2011). Graft polymerization of native chicken feathers for thermoplastic applications. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 59(5), 1729-1738.
  • (5) Hadas, A., & Kautsky, L. (1994). Feather meal, a semi-slow-release nitrogen fertilizer for organic farming.Fertilizer research, 38(2), 165-170.
  • (6) Riffel, A., Lucas, F., Heeb, P., & Brandelli, A. (2003). Characterization of a new keratinolytic bacterium that completely degrades native feather keratin. Archives of Microbiology, 179(4), 258-265.
  • (7) Tiwary, E., & Gupta, R. (2010). Extracellular Expression of Keratinase from Bacillus licheniformis ER-15 in Escherichia coli. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 58(14), 8380-8385.
  • (8) El-Nagar, K., Saleh, S. M., & Ramadan, A. R. (2006). Utilization of feather waste to improve the properties of the Egyptian cotton fabrics. Jour. of Textile and Apparel Technology and Management, 2, 1-12.

Contact us at alinaarvisais@isidore.redeemer.ab.ca or taliadixon@isidore.redeemer.ab.ca, or even send a message to our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OLeSsence