ESR10 – Andrea Rizzo
ESR10 focuses on mapping the spectrum of substrate acceptance of different type of TDP dependent enzymes from an industrial perspective. The goal of this task is to obtain a toolbox of catalysts that cover attractive reactions. The researcher in charge of this project will recruit different classes of carboligases, both novel and previously identified in the literature. This will include cloning and expressing the enzymes, screening them to determine their substrate scope, engineering the protein to address limitations and investigate how to intensify the reaction and scaling it up to an industrial level.
I graduated in 2021 in “Industrial Biotechnologies” at the University of Milano-Bicocca, in Italy, presenting a dissertation about the central metabolism of the yeast Kluyveromyces marxianus. During those years I developed my interest for large-scale and industrial processes, thus I look at this PhD experience in the CC-TOP project as a wonderful opportunity to get involved in this world. I am amazed by how microscopic entities, such as cells or enzymes, can be exploited to produce large amounts of molecules that can preserve our food, supply our engines, or save our lives. If I didn’t become a scientist I’d probably became a chef, or work in the movie industry, two of my main hobbies. As ESR10, I hope to get as much experience as possible during this PhD project, and also to meet many brilliant people, to learn as much as I can from them and become a better scientist. I’m positive these years will be rewarding and will be a perfect conclusion for my academic records.
Project information
Workpackage: WP2
Project title: Screening of C-C bond forming enzymes and reaction intensification for synthesis of chiral intermediates
Host institution: Johnson Matthey
Secondments: University College London and Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
Supervisor: Carmen Aranda
