We now possess the ability to read and write DNA. These tools are not only revolutionizing biotechnology but also the basic life sciences as well. The challenge is that we are still learning the grammar. In other words, we often do not know which genetic perturbations to make in order to alter the behavior of an organism. As a result, synthetic biology still involves much trial and error. Moreover, we are still far from the point where we can engineer new organisms from scratch – rather, we need to alter the physiology of existing ones. Even then, we still need to understand how these organisms function in an integrated manner. In this talk, I will discuss the application systems biology to synthetic biology as a general strategy for overcoming many of these challenges. I will first review some of our previous work applying comparative genomics to inform biological design. I will then discuss our work applying systems biology approaches to improve organisms for fuel and chemical production. I will conclude by discussing our recent work developing tools for engineering non-model organisms with unique properties.
Dr. Christopher Rao is an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, a Robert W. Schaefer Professional Scholar, and a member of the Energy Biosciences Institute. He received his B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 1994 and his Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin in 2000 under the guidance of Dr. James Rawlings. Prior to joining UIUC in 2005, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and University of California, Berkeley working under the guidance of Dr. Adam Arkin. Dr. Rao has authored and co-authored 58 research articles. In addition, he has given invited lectures in more than 55 international meetings and institutions. Dr. Rao has received numerous research and teaching awards and honors, including American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Computing and Systems Technology Outstanding Young Research Award (2012), Petit Scholar from UIUC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (2011), International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC) High Impact Paper Award (2010), UIUC School of Chemical Sciences Excellence in Teaching Award (2008), American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Computing and Systems Technology W. David Smith Award (2007), and National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2007). Dr. Rao is an editor for PLoS Computational Biology and PLoS One. The goal of his research is to understand how cells employ feedback control in decision-making processes. In addition, he develops experimental and computational tools for synthetic biology.
« Hide
