About the platform
The mission of the Biocatalysis and Biosynthesis Platform is to promote biocatalysis and biosynthesis as a complementary method to classic synthesis and to help bridge the gap between academic laboratories and the production plant. By bundling the relevant research competences in Switzerland, the platform strives to develop a comprehensive biocatalytic toolbox consisting of enzyme libraries and methods which will facilitate the development of biocatalytic and biosynthetic processes for the chemical and pharmaceutical industry.
Members / People
The platform is led by Prof. Dr. Rebecca Buller and currently has the following members. ZHAW, Life Science and Facility Management
- Fachstelle Umweltbiotechnologie, Prof. Dr. Urs Baier
- Fachstelle Mess- und Sensortechnik, Prof. Dr. Caspar Demuth
- Fachstelle Umweltgenomik und Systembiologie, Dr. Brion Duffy
- Fachstelle Industrielle Chemie, Prof. Dr. Achim Ecker
- Fachstelle Bioverfahrenstechnik und Zellkulturtechnik , Prof. Dr. Regine Eibl-Schindler und Prof. Dr. Dieter Eibl
- Fachgruppe Grüne Chemie, PD Dr. Christian Frech
- Fachstelle Bioprozesstechnologie, Prof. Dr. Karin Kovar und Dr. Lukas Neutsch
- Fachstelle Organische Chemie, Prof. Dr. Rainer Riedl
- Fachgruppe Chemical Engineering, Dr. Peter Riedlberger
- Fachstelle Micro- und Molekularbiologie, Prof. Dr. Martin Sievers
- Fachstelle Biochemie, Prof. Dr. Christiane Zaborosch
ETH Zürich
- Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, Prof. Dr. Donald Hilvert
Universität Greifswald
- Department Biotechnologie und Enzyme Engineering, Prof. Dr. Uwe Bornscheuer
Universität Bayreuth
- Lehrstuhl für Bioprozesstechnik, Prof. Dr. Ruth Freitag
HES-SO Fribourg
- ChemTech, Prof. Dr. Roger Marti
HES-SO Sion
- Dr. Hans-Peter Meyer
Firmenich SA, Genf
- Dr. Andreas Taglieber
Givaudan SA, Kemptthal
- Dr. Thomas Münch
Join the platform
Please contact Dr. Rebecca Buller to join.
History
The Biocatalysis and Biosynthesis Platform was founded in Dec 2015.
Biocatalysis is a practical and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional metallo- and organocatalysis in chemical synthesis. However, in the majority of industries, the potential of biocatalysis for the sustainable manufacture of asset molecules is far from being fully realized. Despite the progress that has been made for certain enzyme classes such as ketoreductases, transaminases and the widely-used hydrolases, many of the biocatalytic reactions that have been identified in academic laboratories are not applied on an industrial scale.
Recent key advances in DNA sequencing, gene synthesis and data analysis are now enabling scientists to tailor biocatalyst according to the needs of the processes and to reorganize enzymes into new biosynthetic pathways. This progress fuels the so-called “third wave of biocatalysis” and promises to unlock hitherto inaccessible enzyme activities for industrial biocatalysis and engineer microbial and fungal strains for the production of novel asset molecules.
