EAGER: Engineering catalytic activity into the carboxysome shell

University Of California-Berkeley, Berkeley CA

Investigators

Abstract

Plants capture the energy of the sun in the process of photosynthesis, but this is an inefficient process that limits their growth potential. Some bacteria have specialized structures (called carboxysomes) that increase their efficiency of photosynthesis, and if carboxysomes can be introduced into crop plants such as rice, wheat and soybeans it is anticipated that this would improve their growth and yield. The smaller the number of proteins that are needed to reconstitute functional carboxysomes, the easier it will be to succeed. The goal of this project is to combine the roles of two carboxysome proteins into one; in other words, one protein will play two essential roles by combining structural and enzymatic functions. It is proposed to develop two types of bi-functional carboxysome proteins: one that will help deliver carbon dioxide to the interior of the carboxysome, where it will be available to RUBISCO, a key enzyme of photosynthesis; the second will detoxify a molecule (2-phosphoglycolate) that is formed as an unwanted by-product of chemical reactions that compete with photosynthesis. Broader Impacts: This project will provide interdisciplinary training in biochemistry, protein chemistry and synthetic biology to a postdoctoral fellow and to undergraduate students. In addition it will explore innovative approaches to the engineering of structures such as the carboxysome and has the potential to improve crop yields for both food and biofuel.