{% block lead %}With the advent of the synthetic biology revolution, scientists have developed ways to use bacteria to produce commercial products and even treat diseases using engineered probiotics. There are, however, some hurdles that need to be overcome, including the inability to modulate gene expression in a predictable manner and the absence of many of the genetic and regulatory libraries which makes building genetic circuits and assemblies extremely difficult in unconventional chassis. To combat these problems, Team iGEM IIT-Madras is working to create a well-characterized library of ribosome binding bites to fine-tune gene expression in Lactococcus lactis and contribute to the development of standardized genetic parts and systems in this beneficial chassis.{% endblock %}
{% block lead %}With the advent of the synthetic biology revolution, scientists have developed ways to use bacteria to
produce commercial products and even treat diseases using engineered probiotics. There are, however, some hurdles that
need to be overcome, including the inability to modulate gene expression in a predictable manner and the absence of many
of the genetic and regulatory libraries which makes building genetic circuits and assemblies extremely difficult in
unconventional chassis. To combat these problems, Team iGEM IIT-Madras is working to create a well-characterized library
of ribosome binding bites to fine-tune gene expression in Lactococcus lactis and contribute to the development of
standardized genetic parts and systems in this beneficial chassis.{% endblock %}
{% block page_content %}
<divclass="content">
<divclass="container">
<!--Unless stated otherwise, the text is black over white bg-->
<pclass="first-para">Synthetic biology envisions a bioengineering<br>domain for designing new genetic parts and <br>systems, or redesigning of existing ones. <br><br> Until now, the most versatile workhorse of <br>synthetic biology has been <i><b>Escherichia coli.</b></i><br>However, there is a need for exploring new <br>chassis which can be naturally adapted to <br>unique traits or metabolic pathways.</p>
</div>
<divclass="container-fluid">
<divclass="circle">
</div>
<divclass="box"><p><br><br><br></p></div>
<divclass="arrow">
<!-- <p>.</p> -->
<br>
</div>
<divclass="arr">
<br><br>
<divclass="line"></div>
<divclass="point"></div>
</div>
</div>
<divclass="container">
<!--The second para, indented left-->
<pclass="second-para"><spanclass="enlarge">Lactococcus lactis (L. lactis)</span><br> is a ‘Generally Regarded As Safe’ (GRAS)<br>organism. It is naturally found in milk products<br> and is also known to colonize the human gut.<br> Unlike E. coli, it does not have an endotoxin<br> layer, which requires extra measures for<br> purification.<br><br>Due to its ability to use a wide range of<br> substrates and tolerance for a wide range of<br> conditions (pH, temperature, solvent<br> concentration), L. lactis serves as an alternate<br> bacterial model for metabolic and bioprocess<br> engineering.</p>
<pclass="third-para">The range of products it can be engineered to<br>produce include bioplastics, biofuels,<br>biopolymers, polyols, and food flavors.<br><br>However, the absence of genetic and regulatory<br>libraries for this organism make genetic<br>circuits design and assembly challenging in<br>this chassis.<br><br>The ability to fine-tune gene expression forms<br>a cornerstone for the design and operation of<br>genetic circuits. This optimization has not<br>been fully carried out in non-traditional<br>chassis like L. lactis.</p>
</div>
</div>
<br><br>
<divclass="container">
<!--Unless stated otherwise, the text is black over white bg-->