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From 2010.igem.org

Track

Health/Medicine

Abstract

Universal Platform for Polypeptide Delivery: Intelligent Delivery of Ingestible Enzyme Treatment (iDIET)

We have designed a universal platform for polypeptide release within the small intestine of the human gut. Our model system release beta-galactosidase, a functional homologue of human lactase, once it reaches the duodenum to help a lactose intolerant patient metabolize lactose. The chassis for this system is the common probiotic in yoghurt, Lactobacillus acidophilus. Once the Lactobacillus acidophilus has reached the duodenum, they will lyse by either by a timed inducible/repressible system, a bile-inducible system, or an encryption system.

Using DNA we can mimic the functionality of a combination lock, and produce a "locked" gene, which can be effectively "unlocked" only after a specific sequence of inputs. Since DNA functions as a logical medium, the "locked" and "unlocked" states are heritable, which makes this system useful as the computational basis for many higher-order genetic devices from bacterial calculators to engineering of new metabolic pathways to bacterial drug delivery systems.

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