Multidisciplinary Lab Project 2

The multidisciplinary lab project, also called “Gene to Protein project”, will be a "learning by doing" project. The students will be in charge of the bioproduction of a protein using E. coli as a host. If they follow both parts of the project (1 & 2, like students from the Biohealth master's program), they will start with strain construction and continue with pilot-scale production and purification of the protein. Bioprocess engineering is a highly interdisciplinary field of study. The students (and future workers in the field) will benefit from project-based learning with an important practical component, where they can actively experience the interconnection between biology, engineering, and physical sciences.

Part 2 of the project will be dedicated to the "production process design and pilot scale production" of the recombinant protein using a high-cell density fed-batch culture. It will be a multidisciplinary, hands-on training course in Bioprocess Engineering and will be organized over three different periods:

-Week 1: In the Learning Lab, students will participate in workshops to design and plan a production process in accordance with available equipment and data (scientific papers, reports, websites, previous results from UE "Multidisciplinary Lab Project 1"). Based on the bottlenecks identified for the production of recombinant proteins in E. coli, students will choose the culture process to be used, define the production objectives, simulate the culture (planning objective), design a sampling plan, design the culture medium, etc.

-Week 2: In practical training rooms on pilot-scale equipment (20L working volume bioreactor), students will prepare the bioreactor and everything they need to perform the pilot-scale culture. They will be responsible for monitoring the culture and processing real-time data in order to detect and correct any deviations from the anticipated progress of the culture.

-Week 3: In learning labs, students will process and analyze the data. They will be responsible for interpreting and discussing the results and writing a professional report.

This project offers students a unique opportunity to tackle a real-life bioprocess engineering application from gene to protein, with the aim of equipping them to be immediately effective in their future employment in biotechnology companies.This project will provide students with additional training in biological concepts, but will also prepare them to communicate and interact with coworkers trained in different disciplines, as many companies operate with multidisciplinary teams working in a basic functional unit. Students will work in multidisciplinary teams since they have been trained in different disciplines (biology, biochemical engineering, pharmaceutical sciences, etc.) but have also acquired different skills through their internships.

Part 2 of the project will include 6 learning objectives (LO):

-LO1: Students will be able to define bioproduction process goals and to set up an appropriate culture strategy, which implies that -students understand the principles of operating modes, particularly the fed-batch mode-students understand the fundamentals of E. coli metabolism and growth, particularly the overflow mechanism leading to acetate production.

-LO2: Students will be able to plan and simulate abioproduction (be able to develop experimental schemes, ...)

-LO3: Students will understand the functions of a bioreactor and apply this knowledge during the practical course. Students will be able to prepare the device...

-LO4: Students will be able to analyze and interpret key elements of the culture data (mainly online data) to operate the bioreactor.

-LO5: Students will be able to document and analyze the data in a correct and scientific manner.

-LO6: Students will be able to work efficiently in teams and manage their projects.

Know-how and skills in brief:

-Bioprocess engineering (fed-batch culture design, planning, performance, analysis, etc.)

-Project management, communication, and teamwork in a cross-functional and interdisciplinary field

-Reporting (deliverables such as summary notes, calculation sheets, oral presentations, reports)

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Bioprocess Engineering (M1 UE HAV811V "Bioprocess Engineering - BATCH" or equivalent, and M2 UE HAV930V "Bioprocess Engineering - Fed-Batch and Continuous" or equivalent)

Recommended prerequisites:

Project management

English (reading and speaking)

The knowledge assessment is done in full continuous assessment (CCI). Each learning objective is rated through different kinds of assessments: deliverables such as summary notes, calculation sheets, oral presentations, reports; interviews by peers or teachers; anonymous peer assessment of team performance...