Research
Microoorganisms are chemistry powerhouses.
Microorganisms are phenomenal chemists. These seemingly simple lifeforms are microscale chemical factories that generate complex molecules known as natural products.
Natural products have immense practical utility, revolutionizing fields including medicine and agriculture. Over 60% of new drugs entering the market over the last 35 years can be traced to a natural origin (1), while agricultural chemicals derived from a natural source account for over 20% of global sales (2).
Microbial genes are the blueprints for natural product assembly, a process known as biosynthesis. These genetic blueprints direct the production of enzymes, which serve as the synthetic machinery for catalyzing chemical reactions that transform simple chemical building blocks into complex molecules. These enzyme-catalyzed reactions provide ways to produce molecules that are inaccessible by traditional laboratory syntheses and offer sustainable, green alternatives to conventional chemical syntheses.
Over the last 20 years, dramatic improvements in DNA sequencing and computing technology provided a surge of genetic blueprints predicted by bioinformatics analyses to encode natural product biosynthesis. A large majority of enzyme-catalyzed reactions and natural products corresponding to these genetic blueprints remain cryptic. Their unveiling offers immense potential for solving challenges in sustainable chemical production, organic synthesis, medicine, agriculture, and other fields.
Microoorganisms offer immense untapped potential as chemists.
The Lane undergraduate research team in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology discovers and engineers Nature’s genetic blueprints and enzymatic machinery to provide next generation natural products.
Undergraduates at all levels (freshman-seniors) are immersed in cutting edge, interdisciplinary, hands-on natural product research with the goal of making discoveries that benefit science and society beyond campus. This experience prepares students for entry into top-tier graduate programs, as well as careers in industry, government, and academia.
The Lane Lab harnesses the untapped chemistry potential of microorganisms.
References
(1) Newman DJ, Cragg GM. Journal of Natural Products. 2020, 83 (3): 770-803.
(2) Sparks TC, Hahn DR, Garizi NV.Pest Management Science.2017, 73 (4): 700-715.
