The team at Isomerase has access to a large collection of microbial strains, genome sequences, microbial genome editing and bioinformatics tools. We are adept at strain engineering and synthetic biology using a variety of techniques and have used this to facilitate a wide range of research projects across pharma and biotech, consumer goods, agritech, food and ingredients and functional materials.
We focus on understanding the strain - analysing the genome in parallel to traditional strain husbandry methods developed over years of culturing the strains in the Isomerase collection. We engineer biology to deliver new routes to commercially attractive products. Not only do we focus on new products but we are always considering and adapting approaches toward strain optimisation to improve product profiles, facilitate generation of analogues and reduce cost of goods.
What is strain bioengineering?
Following analysis of a strain genome sequence, synthetic biology tools or more traditional microbiological approaches can be used to modify the genetic code of the strain to alter the expression and production profile of target proteins, enzymes and biosynthetic pathways.
Example strain engineering and synthetic biology projects
Example projects have included:
- Targeted deletion of genes, gene clusters or specific pathways - to inactivate existing natural product pathways in an existing producer strain, alter the flux in a metabolic pathway to generate a new product or remove enzyme activities to make a process more productive.
- Overexpression of specific genes or pathways - to generate strains expressing new or higher titres of products.
- Direct engineering of modular enzymes - to produce novel products such as polyketides and non-ribosomal peptides.
- Random chemical or UV mutagenesis - for generation of strains with improved product titre.
- Design, generation, and expression of biosynthetic pathways - for example, to produce a product in an industrial Saccharomyces cerevisiae based on combining genes from different biosynthetic to generate a novel product.
- Expression of metagenomic enzymes - for example, based on metagenomic sequence data from environmental samples where the microbial strain cannot be grown in a lab environment. Enzyme ID, design of expression and transfer into an industrial Pichia pastoris or other strain to express enzymes for biotransformation of a product.
- Genome editing to generate new microbial strains – for example removing or altering biosynthetic pathways or genes to reduce contaminating products and increase the quality of the desired product.
Why choose Isomerase for your synthetic biology project?
Isomerase was one of the first synthetic biology service companies and synthetic biology innovation partners when it was founded over 10 years ago and we have maintained our cutting edge by investment in equipment and technology throughout that period.
Our synthetic biology services typically combine the de novo synthesis of DNA with growing knowledge of genomics to enable the production of novel microbes and processes which produce products of interest and value. We utilise both public genome databases and proprietary genome sequences from our own proprietary strain collection which contains over 20,000 Nagoya protocol-compliant prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbes collected over the last few decades.
Improvements in the speed and cost of DNA synthesis and strain manipulation have allowed us to generate novel processes for products faster and supply synthetic biology services more cost-effectively than ever before. As a synthetic biology CRO and innovation partner we work with a range of DNA synthesis providers, depending on the requirements, and have experience working with highly complex DNA sequences and systems.
Our aim is to simplify synthetic biology and instead make these complex technologies widely available to our partners to allow them to make and own new processes for their valuable products.
Our expertise in developing and scaling upstream (USP) and downstream (DSP) processes also means we think about these aspects from the very beginning of a project.
How can Isomerase as a synthetic biology CRO help partners?
Isomerase, as a Synthetic Biology CRO and innovation partner, can help businesses by providing access to a complex field via a range of services and consultancy support, including DNA design and synthesis, gene editing, strain engineering and protein or enzyme engineering. These services can help businesses develop new products and optimise existing ones, replacing heritage chemical processes with products, or enabling access to entirely new products with improved properties.
As a Synthetic Biology CRO and innovation partner, we can use our expertise to design synthetic DNA constructs that can be used to express existing or new proteins with desired properties. We can use gene-editing technologies to modify the genomes of microorganisms, which can be used to optimise metabolic pathways or develop new bioproduction platforms.
We help businesses conduct research by providing specialised expertise and services that can accelerate the pace of discovery and development. By outsourcing certain aspects of research to a Synthetic Biology CRO, businesses can instead focus on the aspects of the project where their expertise lies.
We also provide consulting services to help businesses develop and plan how to use Synthetic Biology, improve their research strategies and experimental designs and provide access to specialised equipment and technologies that may not be cost-effective for businesses to have on their own sites. This can help businesses conduct research in this impactful area more efficiently and effectively.
Synthetic Biology Services
Our Synthetic Biology services are designed to help businesses and researchers leverage the power of synthetic biology to achieve their goals.
Examples of our synthetic biology services include the design of synthetic DNA constructs, genome editing, metabolic engineering and expression of novel pathways, proteins, enzymes and peptides. These services can be used to prototype and test new genetic constructs, engineer cells and organisms for specific applications, and optimise production processes. We do all of this with a careful eye on responsible innovation.
Synthetic biology often involves analysing and processing large amounts of biological data. Isomerase can support bioinformatics services which provide computational analysis and data interpretation to support synthetic biology research and development. It can be used, for example, to sequence and interrogate prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes, help design new enzymes for use in biocatalysis or improve the properties of existing enzymes, such as by using directed evolution.
It is important to note that the availability and scope of synthetic biology services may vary between providers. Some research institutions and academic labs often specialise in specific areas, so it is advisable to reach out to us directly to discuss your specific requirements and needs.
Why choose Isomerase?
Our team are highly experienced at engineering both fungal and prokaryotic microbial strains, utilising our decades of engineering experience and modern gene editing technologies. In particular, we are highly adept at working with environmental or novel strains, where there is limited information about genetic engineering methods.
We have over 10 years of experience running exceptional collaborations and partnerships with large and small pharmaceutical and biotech companies, agrochemical companies, academic institutions as well as other organisations in a wide range of sectors.
These collaborations have allowed our partners to access a diverse range of expertise, and resources, as well as enhancing their ability to develop and commercialise new products.
Browse our range of synthetic biology services, or get in touch with our team for more information.
Contact us about your strain engineering or synthetic biology project
Contact us for more information about our synthetic biology services, microbial strain optimisation services, and microbial strain engineering or to request a quote or discuss your strain engineering or microbial genome editing project.