Team:Hong Kong HKUST/modules

Project Outline

Our ultimate goal is to build a ‘smart’ glyoxylate shunt that burns extra fatty acid when there is energy surplus. To achieve this, we would have to first build the shunt itself in mammalian cells. The shunt comprises two bacterial glyoxylate enzymes, isocitrate lyase (AceA) and malate synthase (AceB). Tagged with a localization signal peptide, they could be directed to the mitochondria and act on the citric acid cycle, eventually increasing fatty acid uptake. The two enzymes would be initially driven by constitutive promoters (CMV and EF-1alpha promoters), placing the shunt in a constantly “ON” state and burning calories regardless of the energy profile. To improve this, we are developing fatty acid responsive promoters, which, when used to regulate the glyoxylate enzymes, should dispense energy only when it is in excess. Hover your mouse and click on the images below to learn more about each modules!