A Computational Approach for the Selection of a Dehalogenase within a Double-Enzyme System for Effective PFAS Bioremediation - an iGEM project

Contamination by PFAS (Per/Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) is an emerging issue in Veneto region in Italy, as well as in several other world districts, making PFAS pollution a matter of global interest. A student team from University of Padova is currently working on a bioremediation project by developing a double-enzyme approach in order to improve the degradation of the molecules, through the cooperative activity of Laccase and Dehalogenase enzymes expressed in Escherichia Coli. The research will be presented at iGEM competition 2024, a worldwide synthetic biology event where student teams present innovative biological solutions to environmental, social or industrial problems. This thesis explores the application of bioinformatics in order to search and compare the best enzymatic candidates from different PFAS-resistant microorganisms. Moreover, the research also analyses specific protein sites that may be engineered with the aim of enhancing the activity of the enzymes on the substrate.