Team:Purdue/Project

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Project: Hypoxia-Sensitive Circuits

Low oxygen level, or hypoxic, environments are issues in both plant and mammalian systems. From water-logged soils to overpopulated regions of tumors, hypoxic regions provide a niche for novel technologies to be put into place to exploit this condition.

Plants in areas with improper levels of oxygen will have to switch from aerobic respiration to anaerobic fermentation in order to sustain their metabolic processes. Unfortunately this switch to anaerobic fermentation will lead to the accumulation of byproducts that are detrimental to a plant’s life. So a synthetic biological circuit centering on the Adh promoter has been developed to indicate when these low oxygen levels (less than 5% oxygen) are present.

Hypoxia is also very prevalent in densely populated regions of tumors. It is believed that these areas may initiate hypoxia-driven angiogenesis, a process which aides greatly in tumor proliferation. Accordingly, an additional circuit has been created that will highlight the areas where hypoxic regions (less than 1% oxygen) have arisen during tumor development. The development and characterization of these novel circuits will help to lay down foundation for potential remedies to these consequences of hypoxia in both mammalian and plant systems.

Oxygen Sequestration Brainstorming & Thoughts

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 ====Project: Hypoxia-Sensitive Circuits====
-Low-level oxygen, or hypoxic, environments are common issues in both plant and mammalian systems.  From water-logged soils to overpopulated regions of tumors hypoxic regions provide a niche for novel technologies to be put in place and exploit this condition.  The Purdue team has been working in parallel on two applications regarding this idea.
+	Low oxygen level, or hypoxic, environments are issues in both plant and mammalian systems.  From water-logged soils to overpopulated regions of tumors, hypoxic regions provide a niche for novel technologies to be put into place to exploit this condition.
-	With respect to plants, waterlogged soil is a very common hurdle that impedes the growth and challenges the plant’s vitality.  Without proper levels of oxygen the plant will have to switch from aerobic respiration to anaerobic fermentation in order to sustain its metabolic processes.  Unfortunately this switch leads to the accumulation of byproducts that are detrimental to the plants life.  So we’ve developed a circuit that will indicate when low oxygen levels are present.
+Plants in areas with improper levels of oxygen will have to switch from aerobic respiration to anaerobic fermentation in order to sustain their metabolic processes.  Unfortunately this switch to anaerobic fermentation will lead to the accumulation of byproducts that are detrimental to a plant’s life.  So a synthetic biological circuit centering on the Adh promoter has been developed to indicate when these low oxygen levels (less than 5% oxygen) are present.
+Hypoxia is also very prevalent in densely populated regions of tumors. It is believed that these areas may initiate hypoxia-driven angiogenesis, a process which aides greatly in tumor proliferation.  Accordingly, an additional circuit has been created that will highlight the areas where hypoxic regions (less than 1% oxygen) have arisen during tumor development.  The development and characterization of these novel circuits will help to lay down foundation for potential remedies to these consequences of hypoxia in both mammalian and plant systems.
-	 The adjoining project centers on the hypoxic regions that develop in growing tumors.  These regions are linked to the need for angiogenesis which leads to an increase in tumor size.  The team has developed a circuit that will also highlight the areas where hypoxic regions have arisen during tumor development.  With the development and characterization of these novel circuits the Purdue team hopes to have laid down some foundation for potential remedies to these consequences of hypoxia.