Nicola Patron | Earlham Institute, UK We use genomics, synthetic biology and genome-engineering approaches to: • Engineer photosynthetic organisms for rapid, high-yielding biosynthesis of high-value proteins and molecules (e.g. bespoke chassis for production of specific molecules for agriculture, health or industry) • Increase the yield potential and nutritive value of crops (e.g. transgene-free plants with precision edits)
Nicola is a Group Leader in Synthetic Biology at the Earlham Institute. Her work aims to develop technologies to engineer photosynthetic organisms for the biosynthesis of high-value products and therapeutics, and to improve the yield potential and nutritive value of crop plants. Her broader scientific interests are in understanding the regulation of gene expression and the mechanisms and consequences of gene transfer events. As a SynBio LEAP fellow Nicola was recognized as an emerging leader in synthetic biology with a desire to ensure that synthetic biology has positive social impact; she is interested in the complex questions of ownership and intellectual property that surround genetic sequences and biomolecules and how these influence attitudes towards biotechnology.
We aim to understand:
We develop and use the following tools and technologies:
• How different promoter architectures and cis-regulatory elements enable gene expression
• Efficient, automated parallel DNA assembly at nanoscales from characterized, reusable, standard parts (Earlham DNA Foundry)
• The mechanisms and impact of gene-transfer events
• Efficient and specific CRISPR-based tools for (plant) genome engineering (targeted mutagenesis, targeted gene addition and recoding)
• How plant metabolism responds to perturbation and detoxifies foreign molecules • How codon usage affects translation rates
• Minimal synthetic regulatory elements, tuneable, synthetic transcription factors and genetic Boolean logic gates to control relative gene expression
Dr. N. J. Patron | Plant Synthetic Biology Group Leader
Earlham Institute, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 7UZ, UK Office: +44 (0)1606 450845 Skype: nicolajpatron Email: nicola.patron@earlham.ac.uk Web: www.earlham.ac.uk | www.nicolajpatron.com Twitter: @nicolabiologist LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-patron-427b124b/