Accelerated Discovery Synthetic Biological Materials

Project Description

Our research unlocks Synthetic Biological Materials' (SBMs) potential by exploring protein-based material properties. These insights could transform high-performance material creation in medical, adhesive, and plastics industries, while illuminating protein functions in natural systems. Utilizing genetic engineering, we have converted bacteria into programmable factories, producing a wide array of SBMs. Previously, we have synthesized a hybrid silk-amyloid-mussel foot protein (SAM) and demonstrated superior strength and toughness to that of steel and natural spider silk. We believe further manipulation of the genetic code of this synthetic protein may lead to many discoveries linking sequence variations to material properties. An automated workflow using the BIOPACIFIC system will significantly increase our production and testing capacities, enabling exploration of thousands of sequences within the design space of the ~65,000 unique permutations of the SAM. Additionally, with the application of Bayesian statistics and machine learning models we can predict significant regions within this design space, mitigating the necessity for exhaustive testing of the entire library. This research not only sets a new precedent for understanding protein functionality in a broader context but also offers a viable pathway for the development of high-performance materials through sequence optimization.

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