Team:KULeuven/Modelling/Vanillin Production
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Vanillin Production
overview
The vanillin synthesis consists of a five step process starting from tyrosine. By locking both the transcription of the Sam 8 and COMT enzyme we prevent vanillin synthesis without the presence of RIBOKEY. E. coli controls its own tyrosine production which is an non essential amino acid. However,should this be insufficient, we can always add extra tyrosine. The production process will be tested in two steps. First, from tyrosine to ferulic acid; then from ferrulic acid to vanillin. Because we want the production of vanillin proportional to the amount of input key, it is essential that the regulated enzymes that catalyse the production of (intracellular) vanillin degrade as fast as possible. As proteins are normally very stable in the intracellular environment the SAM8 and COMT where labelled with a LVA-tag, which insures relatively fast half times.
Models
Simulation
Because COMT and SAM8 are regulated by the amount of mRNA key its worthy to investigate the change of COMT and SAM8 production in function of the input amount of mRNA key. Because Km of the reaction from caffeic acid to ferulic acid is well above the expected concentration of COMT in the cell, the steady state amount of COMT is proportional to the input of mRNA key.