Current Projects

Innotargets

This EU Horizon 2020 project, led by the University of Copenhagen, is a collaborative network training ealy career researchers in techniques to counter antimicrobial resistance in microorganisms. Innotargets has a dedicated web site.

Biofilms and Antimicrobial Resistance

This is a collaborative project with John Wain at the Quadram Institute, Norwich, involving modelling the metabolism of biofilm-forming pathogens.

Recent Projects

Modelling Acetogen Metabolism

This involves genome-scale modelling of the unusual metabolism of one of the acetogens, bacteria that have potential applications in industrial biotechnology. It is in association with Novo Nordisk Centre for Biosustainability and has been supported by a BBSRC iCASE studentship from September 2015. Further details . In addition, the group has been collaborating with modellers in the Nottingham University Synthetic Biology Research Centreto generate genome-scale models of other acetogens of interest to the centre.

Using Flux Control Analysis To Improve Oilseed Rape

This was a project led by Professor John Harwood (Cardiff University) and Professor Tony Fawcett (University of Durham) for which David Fell supplied input to the theoretical and computational aspects of the Metabolic Control Analysis and its implications for altering triglyceride biosynthesis to increase the oil content of rape seed. The experimental work on transgenic plants at Cardiff and Durham has been completed, but the analysis is continuing. The project was funded by the BBSRC (Grants BB/M02850X/1 and BB/L009420/1).

Further information and available data arising from the project are on the page OilseedRape.

C1net

David Fell was co-investigator to the principal investigator, Nigel Minton, University of Nottingham to assist in running this BBSRC Network in Industrial Biotechnology (NIBB) concerned with developing applications of C1 gas fermentation. See the BBSRC and Oxford Brookes University announcements. The project has its own website. The group's contribution is in the area of metabolic modelling and design of engineered pathways. Modelling workshops have been run for members of BBSRC NIBBs; see Meetings for details.

RICEFUEL

Engineering enzymes, bacteria and bioconversion processes for advanced biofuels from waste grain straw is a collaborative project funded by BBSRC and the DBT in India. The central web site for the project is http://www.ricefuel.net. Our project page is under construction.

Acclimation of Photosynthesis

Which carries the acronym AccliPhot, started in 2013 and is funded by the EU.

Metabolic modelling to support synthetic biology in C1net organisms

This was a short Proof of Concept project awarded by the C1net NIBB. Further details are on its project page.

Development of Metabolic Models to Support Systems Biology Approaches to Bioenergy Research

A BBSRC-funded UK-India Partnering Award: its page is UKIPA

Combining Algal and Plant Physiology

This is described at CAPP. Our component involved modelling CO2 diffusion, transport and fixation in plant cells.

The funding for the following ended in 2013, but work is still continuing on them.

Fruit Integrative Modelling

This collaborative project has its own website here

Predictive Modelling of the Rice (Oryza sativa) metabolic network

This was funded by a BBSRC UK-India Partnering Award to our group, and a DBT, India, CREST Fellowship to our collaborator Dr Sudip Kundu, University of Calcutta. Details can be found here.