Henry Taunt
PhD student
BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry (University of Bristol)
Email: h.taunt[at]ucl.ac.uk
Research interests
Production of therapeutic proteins in the algal chloroplast
My PhD is focused on utilizing C. reinhardtii as an expression platform for therapeutic proteins. In particular, I am investigating a potential novel class of antibiotics known as bacteriophage endolysins. These are lytic enzymes from bacterial specific viruses that enable the viral particles to escape the bacterial cell at the end of their life cycle. This is done by breaking apart the peptidoglycan cell wall. I have cloned the gene that encodes one of these enzymes into the C. reinhardtii chloroplast, and shown that the enzyme produced is able to specifically attack a penicillin-resistant human pathogen. At present, I am attempting to purify and characterize this lysin, as well as beginning investigations into two more lysins specific to human pathogens.
Page last modified on 07 nov 12 11:52
