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MICROBIAL PRODUCTION OF PROTEIN ADHESIVE

Award Information
Agency: Department of Health and Human Services
Branch: N/A
Contract: N/A
Agency Tracking Number: 4856
Amount: $480,000.00
Phase: Phase II
Program: SBIR
Solicitation Topic Code: N/A
Solicitation Number: N/A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: N/A
Award Year: 1988
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): N/A
Award End Date (Contract End Date): N/A
Small Business Information
16020 Industrial Drive
Gaithersburg, MD 20877
United States
DUNS: N/A
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 David M Anderson
 Principal Investigator
 (301) 258-0552
Business Contact
Phone: () -
Research Institution
N/A
Abstract

THE OBJECTIIVE OF THIS PHASE I RESEARCH IS TO DEVELOP AN EFFICIENT MICROBIAL PROCESS FOR COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION OF A POLYPHENOLIC PROTEIN ADHESIVE SIMILAR TO THAT PRODUCED BY THE MUSSEL MYTILIS EDULIS. UNLIKE MOST ADHESIVES, THIS STRONG ADHESIVE CAN SET AND ADHERE TO SURFACES IN WET ENVIRONMENTS. THUS, IT IS LIKELY TO HAVE APPLICATION IN DENTAL RESTORATIONS, AS A SURGICAL SOFT TISSUE ADHESIVE, ANDIN A WIDE VARIETY OF OTHER MEDICAL APPLICATIONS. THE NATURAL MUSSEL ADHESIVE PROTEIN (MW 130,000) HAS BEEN PURIFIED AND CHARACTERIZED, AND SHORT ANALOGS HAVE BEEN CHEMICALLY SYNTHESIZED. HOWEVER, THE MOST COST-EFFECTIVE METHOD TO PRODUCE A HIGH MOLECULAR WEIGHT PROTEIN WITH THE PROPERTIES OF THE NATURAL PROTEIN ADHESIVE WILL UNDOUBTEDLY BE MICROBIAL PRODUCTION FROM A CLONED GENE. IN PHASE I, GENEX PROPOSES TO CLONE A CDNA SEQUENCE ENCODING THE MUSSEL ADHESIVE PROTEIN USING MYTILIS EDULIS PHENOL GLAND MRNA. IN PHASE II, THE ADHESIVE PROTEIN WILL BE EXPRESSED IN A MICROBIAL PRODUCTION STRAIN; METHODS FOR HYDROXYLATION AND CURING WILL BE DEVELOPED AND THE ADHESIVE PROPERTIES AND POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS WILL BE ASSESSED.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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