Student projects
BSc and MSc final projects (BEP&MEP) within the Industrial Microbiology research group
Scientific staff: Jack Pronk, Han de Winde, Jean-Marc Daran, Pascale Daran-Lapujade and Ton van Maris.
The Industrial Microbiology (IMB) research group aims to unravel the catalytic and regulatory networks in industrial micro-organisms. The underlying, application-oriented objectives are (i) the rational, knowledge-based optimization of existing industrial processes and (ii) the development of new industrial applications of industrial micro-organisms. The most intensively studied organisms in our group are the filamentous fungus Penicillium chrysogenum and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Our research activities occur at the interface of fundamental science and industrial application. Recent highlights involve:
- successful metabolic and evolutionary engineering of S. cerevisiae for fermentation of xylose and arabinose, thereby paving the way for yeast-based biofuels production from non-food feedstocks
- analysis of the genome of the antibiotics-producing fungus P. chrysogenum with DNA-microarray technology, leading to new insights and targets for metabolic engineering
- quantitative analysis of product formation and gene expression in S. cerevisiae at near-zero specific growth rates, with the long-term goal of uncoupling growth (= biomass formation) from product formation.
A broad range of techniques is used within the IMB research group, including: Molecular biology for both strain construction and analysis, batch, fed-batch and chemostat cultivation, intracellular and extracellular metabolite analysis, isolation and functional analysis of organelles, DNA-microarray analysis and protein/enzyme activity assays.
The final projects for BSc and MSc students are an integral part of the front-line research in our group. We welcome students in our group and they provide key contributions to our research - not just by performing experiments but also in particular by generating original ideas!! To allow for projects that take both your research preferences and the continuously changing research activities in the section into account, project information is always given during personal appointments.
Interested? Send an e-mail to Ton van Maris (A.J.A.vanMaris@TUDelft.NL ) who is the contact person for BSc and MSc projects within our group for any questions or for an appointment.
