Industrial Biotechnology Sector Research Articles

Developing Supportive Bioeconomy Policies

Developing Supportive Bioeconomy Policies

Challenge-driven innovation and responsible innovation: dynamics and disconnects explored through the UK’s industrial biotechnology sector

ABSTRACTRecent years have seen the uptake of challenge and mission-oriented innovation policies in Europe, including the UK. These developments have been paralleled by variable support for responsible research and innovation (RRI) policies. This article explores the adoption of challenge-driven innovation strategies in the UK's industrial biotech (IB) sector alongside RRI expectations, examining the effects and implications. Drawing on analysis of IB policy documents and interview data, we argue that the articulation of innovation aims in terms of grand challenges provides innovation stakeholders with new possibilities to re-frame the value and purposes of controversial technologies such as synthetic biology, and to downplay or ignore the anticipation of potential impacts and risks. The conflation of innovation objectives and grand societal challenges has afforded new opportunities to construct representations of societal consensus and alignment, while avoiding the participatory practices on which shared understandings and nuanced exploration of societal expectations would normally be based.

Selected Developments in Biotechnology Law and the Biotechnology Industry

Selected Developments in Biotechnology Law and the Biotechnology Industry

Tendências quanto ao conhecimento e às aplicações biotecnológicas do <i>Psidium guineense</i> evidenciadas pelo monitoramento tecnológico

A família Myrtaceae é parte fundamental da economia mundial e está presente em diferentes países na Europa, África, Ásia e América do Sul, com mais de 133 gêneros e cerca de 4.000 espécies descritas, entre as quais se destaca o araçá (Psidium guineense) no Brasil. Essa espécie tem uso potencial em diversos setores econômicos como o farmacêutico, alimentício e a indústria madeireira. Em razão da importância do araçá e de sua ocorrência em todo território brasileiro, estudos sobre o monitoramento tecnológico do araçá podem servir de base para futuras pesquisas que visem sua utilização para a obtenção de produtos industriais, bem como para produtores que desejem agregar valor aos produtos à base de araçá. Os resultados do presente estudo mostram que 61% das publicações (artigos científicos, teses, dissertações e patentes) sobre o araçá estão relacionadas ao setor ambiental, 37% à biotecnologia da saúde, e 2%, à biotecnologia industrial. Além disso, 97,6% das informações sobre o araçá estão publicadas em forma de artigos científicos, teses ou dissertações, enquanto 2,4% estão protegidas em forma de patentes. Assim, os dados do monitoramento tecnológico do araçá enfatizam a importância da integração e da cooperação científica e tecnológica entre universidades, institutos de pesquisa e os setores industrial/produtivo, para inserir o Brasil em uma posição mais estratégica na exploração de seus recursos genéticos.

Adaptation to Industrial Stressors Through Genomic and Transcriptional Plasticity in a Bioethanol Producing Fission Yeast Isolate.

Schizosaccharomyces pombe is a model unicellular eukaryote with ties to the basic research, oenology and industrial biotechnology sectors. While most investigations into S. pombe cell biology utilize Leupold’s 972h- laboratory strain background, recent studies have described a wealth of genetic and phenotypic diversity within wild populations of S. pombe including stress resistance phenotypes which may be of interest to industry. Here we describe the genomic and transcriptomic characterization of Wilmar-P, an S. pombe isolate used for bioethanol production from sugarcane molasses at industrial scale. Novel sequences present in Wilmar-P but not in the laboratory S. pombe genome included multiple coding sequences with near-perfect nucleotide identity to Schizosaccharomyces octosporus sequences. Wilmar-P also contained a ∼100kb duplication in the right arm of chromosome III, a region harboring ght5+, the predominant hexose transporter encoding gene. Transcriptomic analysis of Wilmar-P grown in molasses revealed strong downregulation of core environmental stress response genes and upregulation of hexose transporters and drug efflux pumps compared to laboratory S. pombe. Finally, examination of the regulatory network of Scr1, which is involved in the regulation of several genes differentially expressed on molasses, revealed expanded binding of this transcription factor in Wilmar-P compared to laboratory S. pombe in the molasses condition. Together our results point to both genomic plasticity and transcriptomic adaptation as mechanisms driving phenotypic adaptation of Wilmar-P to the molasses environment and therefore adds to our understanding of genetic diversity within industrial fission yeast strains and the capacity of this strain for commercial scale bioethanol production.

A systematic reconsideration on proteases.

Proteases are a group of large complex enzyme molecules that perform highly focused proteolysis functions. A vast quantity of the protease enzymes is predominantly sourced from microbial fermentation process, although proteases tend to natively present in plant, animals and humans. Proteases possess a pervasive importance in medical and pharmaceutical sector, because of its enriched specificity towards biomolecules. They are also actively encompassed in regulating certain physiological pathways. A distinct territory of human disorders is treated by substrate specific proteases. Enormous numbers of catalytic activities in habitual metabolism process of a living organism are protease dependent. Pilot scale researches and product development in industrial biotechnology sectors are wholly based on any one of the protease enzymes. The applications of the protease enzymes and its economic benefits of being an eco-friendly material are far-reaching. This review presents a brief overview on the classification and sources of various types of proteases. We describe the essential evidences of role of protease in different sectors. The proteases could be a potential relieves to harmful synthetic chemicals in distinctive industrial processes and thus gains global perception.

The major cellulases CBH-1 and CBH-2 of Neurospora crassa rely on distinct ER cargo adaptors for efficient ER-exit.

Filamentous fungi are native secretors of lignocellulolytic enzymes and are used as protein-producing factories in the industrial biotechnology sector. Despite the importance of these organisms in industry, relatively little is known about the filamentous fungal secretory pathway or how it might be manipulated for improved protein production. Here, we use Neurospora crassa as a model filamentous fungus to interrogate the requirements for trafficking of cellulase enzymes from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi. We characterized the localization and interaction properties of the p24 and ERV-29 cargo adaptors, as well as their role in cellulase enzyme trafficking. We find that the two most abundantly secreted cellulases, CBH-1 and CBH-2, depend on distinct ER cargo adaptors for efficient exit from the ER. CBH-1 depends on the p24 proteins, whereas CBH-2 depends on the N. crassa homolog of yeast Erv29p. This study provides a first step in characterizing distinct trafficking pathways of lignocellulolytic enzymes in filamentous fungi.

The Long View: Policy Directions in Australia to Support the Industrial Biotechnology Sector

The Long View: Policy Directions in Australia to Support the Industrial Biotechnology Sector

Expanding the Brazilian Industrial Biotechnology Sector

Expanding the Brazilian Industrial Biotechnology Sector

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER MODELS BASED ON ACADEMIC SPIN-OFFS WITHIN THE INDUSTRIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY SECTOR

Industrial biotechnology is the application of biotechnology for the environment friendly production and processing of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, materials, and bioenergy. The commercial development is mainly driven by multinational enterprises (MNEs), whereas small and medium enterprises (SMEs) contribute primarily to the technological development. The challenge is that generally a technology transfer gap exists between basic research and development (R&D) at universities or research institutions and the commercialisation of the results by established companies. Based on the analysis of 17 case studies from the industrial biotechnology sector, this paper investigates the technology transfer role of spin-offs from universities and research institutions to close the technology transfer gap. Different technology transfer models have been used between established companies and spin-offs after further developing the technology following the spin-off process. Whereas MNEs are very active in making new technologies available both by acquiring spin-offs or engaging them as service providers, SMEs, due to limited financial resources, are more focused on research cooperations with spin-offs, especially by engaging them as service providers.

Importance of venture capital investors for the industrial biotechnology industry

As in the medical biotechnology area some decades ago, the fast technological development within industrial biotechnology (IB) has caused numerous new ventures. Venture capital (VC) has become a major capital source for these companies and VC investors have particularly allocated financing to research and development (R&D) based companies. Since the early 2000s, the global net stock of VC investments in IB companies has continuously increased over the past 12 years and exceeded 3.5 billion US dollars at the end of 2013. In 2013, the gross amount of VC money was 386 million US dollars distributed to 20 companies corresponding to an average amount of 19.3 million US dollars for each company. The rising capital contribution into the IB sector indicates that it is seen as an attractive investment opportunity for VC investors. Analysing the VC investments by segments shows that there is a strong preference for biofuels and biochemicals. The regional breakdown of VC activities shows that the Americas are the leading region followed by Europe.

Triterpene Biosynthesis in Plants

The triterpenes are one of the most numerous and diverse groups of plant natural products. They are complex molecules that are, for the most part, beyond the reach of chemical synthesis. Simple triterpenes are components of surface waxes and specialized membranes and may potentially act as signaling molecules, whereas complex glycosylated triterpenes (saponins) provide protection against pathogens and pests. Simple and conjugated triterpenes have a wide range of applications in the food, health, and industrial biotechnology sectors. Here, we review recent developments in the field of triterpene biosynthesis, give an overview of the genes and enzymes that have been identified to date, and discuss strategies for discovering new triterpene biosynthetic pathways.

Modelling and Optimization Studies on a Novel Lipase Production by Staphylococcus arlettae through Submerged Fermentation

Microbial enzymes from extremophilic regions such as hot spring serve as an important source of various stable and valuable industrial enzymes. The present paper encompasses the modeling and optimization approach for production of halophilic, solvent, tolerant, and alkaline lipase from Staphylococcus arlettae through response surface methodology integrated nature inspired genetic algorithm. Response surface model based on central composite design has been developed by considering the individual and interaction effects of fermentation conditions on lipase production through submerged fermentation. The validated input space of response surface model (with R 2 value of 96.6%) has been utilized for optimization through genetic algorithm. An optimum lipase yield of 6.5 U/mL has been obtained using binary coded genetic algorithm predicted conditions of 9.39% inoculum with the oil concentration of 10.285% in 2.99 hrs using pH of 7.32 at 38.8°C. This outcome could contribute to introducing this extremophilic lipase (halophilic, solvent, and tolerant) to industrial biotechnology sector and will be a probable choice for different food, detergent, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. The present work also demonstrated the feasibility of statistical design tools integration with computational tools for optimization of fermentation conditions for maximum lipase production.

Technology Transfer Models Between Industrial Biotechnology Companies and Academic Spin-Offs

Technology Transfer Models Between Industrial Biotechnology Companies and Academic Spin-Offs

Book review on Bioinformation Discovery: Data to knowledge in Biology

Researchers in almost all disciplines of Biology use mathematical, statistical models and computer programs to analyze and validate biological data. Systematic data mining is frequently completed in recent years using Bioinformatics soft-wares. The available Bioinformatics techniques and tools help annotate functions for newly generated data in biological investigation. The book (ISBN 978-1-4419-0518-5 e-ISBN 978-1-4419-0519-2) entitled “Bioinformation Discovery: Data to knowledge in Biology” by Dr. Pandjassarame Kangueane is published by Springer USA. This book describes the use of Biological data and Bioinformatics techniques and tools in Biological knowledge discovery. The book contains ten chapters. The first chapter describes concepts, principles and components of Bioinformatics with its various applications in agriculture, healthcare and industrial biotechnology sectors. The author precisely highlights that a sound knowledge in the basic concepts of bioinformatics is the real foundation for Bioinformation discovery from data. In the same chapter he also discussed the importance of Bioinformatics in Drug Discovery. The second chapter describes biological datasets and methods to create data subsets from primary databases like GenBank, EMBL, DDBJ and Protein databank (PDB). The provided dataset examples illustrate the importance of specialized datasets in Biological knowledge discovery. There are number of Bioinformatics tools and techniques freely available online for data mining and knowledge discovery in specific areas of Biology. In this context, Chapter 3 (Tools and Techniques) gives an account of some of the commonly used tools frequently cited in this book. The ongoing trends in biological sciences are to understand the protein-protein interaction within and across cells. The chapter 4 (Protein Subunits Interaction) highlights the use of 3D structure datasets to derive information and geometrical (interface size, planarity, sphericity, and complementarity) and chemical (the types of amino acid chemical groups, hydrophobicity, electrostatic interactions, and H-bonds) properties for protein subunit interactions. The formation and mechanism of folding for homodimers (dimers of identical subunits) is intriguing. The fifth chapter relates structural features to homodimer folding and binding using structural datasets. The provided schematic illustrations help in understanding the homodimer folding and binding mechanism. In Chapter 6 (Fusion Proteins), the author discusses on fusion proteins in one species mimic operons, protein-protein interaction, alternative splicing and multiple functions in another species. This chapter help relate gene fusion in establishing optimal dynamics and kinetics. The study of genetic variation among ethnic groups (American Indian, Australian aboriginal, Black, Caucasoid, Oriental, Hispanic, Mixed race, and Pacific Islander) is fascinating. Chapter 7 (Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) and Peptide Binding) discusses major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes and their sequence polymorphism (sequence level variation). The discussion on issues in human MHC genes and methods for MHC peptide binding prediction helps to get insights into gene polymorphism and its impact in population based medicine. Chapter 8 (HLA Supertypes) gives the precise account of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles that demonstrates functional overall lap among HLA alleles for population coverage. To take readers further, in Chapter 9 (TEpitope Designer) the author described a web server named ’TEpitope Designer‘ which can be used to facilitate HLA-peptide binding prediction for peptide vaccine design. The last Chapter (Chapter 10: Eukaryotic Genes, Functions, Genomes, Design, and Evolution) has highlighted the main issues associated with the study of eukaryotic genes, genomes, function, design, and their evolution. Database such as U-Genome (database of relevant genome information in unicellular eukaryotes) which plays an important role in the understanding of unicellular genomes, their design and evolution is also discussed along with some other databases like ExInt (database of exon­intron gene structure in eukaryotic genes). This chapter gives a summary of several issues (exons, introns, single exon genes, intron organization and chromosome content) in comparative and functional genomics. In summary, this is a very useful book. It is written meticulously by an expert in the emerging field of Bioinformation discovery. This book provides plenty of interesting tips to use data in knowledge discovery. Each chapter concludes with a set of exercise problems for mastery of the subject. The language used in the book is extremely lucid, and hence book is very useful for undergraduate. This book is highly recommended for post-graduate students in Biology and Life Sciences. It should be noted that the book is available in both hard bound and electronic versions.

Commentary: Biotech Blooms in the Delaware Valley

In June 2008 Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Reviews along with other leading journals in the field was invited to review developments in the Philadelphia region as a model for co-operation between the academic researchers in the Life Sciences and Medicine and the Industrial Biotechnology Sector. This report summarises the impressions made from a “European” viewpoint based on selected site visits.

A nationwide biotechnology outreach and awareness program for Malaysian high schools

Biotechnology education in developing nations remains one of the rate limiting factors in achieving optimal human resource capacity to drive and tap the bio-resources of these nations. Many developing countries are situated within rich bio-diversity enclaves. Biotechnology offers the promise of tapping these bio resources towards due process of developing these nations. While there may be a steady stream of biology and biotechnology based graduates, from Malaysian as well as foreign universities contributing to the human resource base for these countries, the numbers and knowledge diversity produced, still lack the capacity to optimally power research and development as well as supply the industrial biotechnology sectors of these countries. Realizing the need to address these issues at the grassroots level of higher education, Malaysia has taken an active step of bringing biotechnology into the classrooms of high schools throughout the country. These future generations of Malaysians, are hoped to progress towards manning and driving Malaysia's BioValley initiatives (a biotech based R&D and industry cluster), towards the national dream of developed nation status by the year 2020, using biotechnology as an economic growth vehicle. Here, we share our experiences in developing and proliferating a biotechnology awareness program for Malaysian high schools. It is hoped that similar programs will strive towards similar objectives in other developing countries.

Industrial Strength Biotech

Industrial strength biotech Martina Habeck Biotechnology can make industrial processes cheaper while doing less damage to the environment, according to a new study presented at the World Life Sciences Forum BioVision in Lyon, France, in April 2003. The idea of applying biotechnology not just to medicine and agriculture, but also to industrial production is gaining momentum. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) predicted a few years ago that the use of bioprocesses in industrial settings could contribute to industrial sustainability, and some member countries, including the US, have put policies in place to foster the development of a biobased economy. Europe, however, has no such long-term strategy. In order to spur a debate among European policy makers, six companies already active in the industrial biotechnology sector came together Industrial strength biotec