Congratulations, Eugene!
Warmest congratulations to Eugene Serebryany for his new NSF award!
This NSF project aims to overcome limitations in biomanufacturing by designing proteins known as transporters, proteins that act like molecular doors that control how molecules move in and out of cells. Transporters limit how well cells can produce the valuable chemicals used in products like fragrances, polymers, and food because transporters are selective in the cargo they release from a cell. Identifying the right transporter for a specific molecule is slow and inefficient. By applying artificial intelligence, this project will create user-friendly tools that allow researchers to design transporters for many different chemicals, making bioproduction faster and more cost-effective. This innovation will drive economic growth using resources like plant waste to create commodity molecules. In addition to advancing science, the project will foster collaboration between industry and academia, train the next generation of researchers, and contribute to building a resilient U.S. bioeconomy.
The proposal addresses a critical bottleneck in bioproduction: the inefficient transport of small molecules across cell membranes, which limits titers, rates, and yields (TRY) in microbial production systems. By leveraging advancements in AI and machine learning (ML), such as protein language models, in addition to structural modeling, and data-driven predictions, the project will help identify and optimize transporter-substrate specificity. Beyond enhancing TRY, this work has broader implications for drug delivery systems and other applications involving cellular transport mechanisms. By integrating experimental validation with AI-based design, the project will establish a pipeline for improving biomanufacturing efficiency and supply chain resilience, advance fermentation-based synthetic methods, and promote the adoption of U.S. based bioproduction technologies.
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2449589&HistoricalAwards=false
