De novo design of mini-proteins to inhibit bacterial biofilm formation

presented on June 2nd 2021
speaker: Andrea Garavito
host: Chris Bahl

abstract: Biofilms are a prominent health and economical threat to society because they can be found in almost every environment, including water supplies, air condition vents, oil pipelines, or even medical devices such as a prosthetic heart valve. The formation of the biofilms in many Gram-negative bacteria is mediated in the periplasm by the Lap system. We are using a novel computational approach to design de-novo mini-protein from a single hotspot residue to inhibit a protein-protein interaction critical to the Lap system. Here, I will discuss the computational approach and the experimental screening of the de-novo designs.  This work will facilitate investigation of the mechanisms controlling biofilm formation, and will provide a demonstration that the Lap system is a viable target for biofilm inhibition.