Solving for the P in NPK Fertilization Using Enzymes with Benjamin Scott
The global food system has a phosphorus problem that few people talk about. Unlike nitrogen, which cycles naturally through our atmosphere, phosphorus is mined from finite deposits and has no natural cycle. A massive 100-kilometer conveyor belt—visible from space—transports phosphate-rich rock from the Sahara Desert to ships waiting to distribute this critical resource worldwide. Any disruption to this supply chain would threaten global agriculture, yet when phosphorus runs off fields, it creates devastating algal blooms in lakes and rivers.Ben Scott, Engineering Biology Platform Lead at the Global Institute for Food Security, is developing an elegant solution using protein engineering. His team is redesigning enzymes called phytases to unlock organic phosphorus already present in soil but unavailable to plants. Up to 80% of organic phosphorus exists as phytate molecules bound to metal ions, making them inaccessible. While natural phytases can break these bonds, they've evolved to work in acidic, warm environments—not the neutral, cooler conditions of agricultural soils.Scott is combining protein engineering with automation and AI to create enzymes specifically tailored for field applications. His team uses high-throughput robotics to test thousands of enzyme variants across different conditions, generating quality data that feeds AI models to design better proteins. Through this, accomplishing twin goals — reducing our dependence on mined phosphate while preventing the environmental damage caused by phosphorus runoff — could be within reach.The work exemplifies how synthetic biology can address climate and food security challenges through creative biological design. By moving beyond the limitations of natural enzymes to create proteins specifically tailored to agricultural needs, Scott's research points toward a more sustainable future for phosphorus management in global agriculture. Ben Scott on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminmscott/Send us a text
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40:30
What if Therapeutic-Grade Biotech Was Used for Environmental Remediation with Pranam Chatterjee
Imagine proteins engineered to seek out and bind toxic heavy metals, cleaning up contaminated sites and potentially treating metal poisoning in humans. In this episode, Duke University professor and entrepreneur Pranam Chatterjee shares how his has developed two impressive AI tools transforming this field: MetaLATTE, which predicts whether proteins will bind specific metals, and the upcoming MetaLORIAN, which generates custom peptides designed to target particular metals like cadmium, lead, or copper. These technologies represent a significant advancement over traditional remediation approaches, potentially offering more precise, selective methods for environmental cleanup.What makes this work particularly exciting is its dual potential—the same protein engineering techniques could address environmental pollution while simultaneously developing therapies for human metal poisoning. From brownfield remediation to industrial metal recycling and medical applications, these programmable proteins could offer unprecedented flexibility in how we tackle toxic metal contamination.Visit chatterjeelab.com or huggingface.com/chatterjeelab to explore these tools yourself and see firsthand how AI-driven protein engineering is revolutionizing environmental remediation.Send us a text
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44:44
New Funding and Innovation Models in Biotech: Combining Blockchain and Decentralized Coordination with Albert Anis
Cryptocurrency and climate biotechnology might seem like an unusual pairing, but Albert Anis, founding steward of ValleyDAO, is showing this combination has remarkable potential. Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are creating entirely new funding mechanisms for scientists working on our planet's most critical challenges.At the heart of ValleyDAO's approach is a radical rethinking of how intellectual property can be governed and commercialized. Through "IP NFTs" (non-fungible tokens representing intellectual property), communities of token holders can collectively participate in funding research, making governance decisions, and advancing technologies from lab to marketplace. By creating aligned communities around specific scientific innovations, ValleyDAO provides more than just funding – it delivers expertise, connections, and sustained support through the challenging commercialization process.While traditional science funding faces significant cuts and challenges, new tools like AI and crypto could help create opportunities for bottom-up innovation. This tension is precisely where transformative new approaches can emerge.Send us a text
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51:13
Unlocking Enzymes' Potential by Locking Them in Place with James Weltz
What if we could harness nature's most precise chemical tools and make them work in industrial settings? James Weltz, co-founder and CSO of Cascade Bio, reveals how enzyme immobilization technology is transforming chemical manufacturing by stabilizing delicate biological catalysts.From his childhood exploring chemical plants with his industrial hygienist father to his groundbreaking PhD research, Weltz shares the journey that led to Cascade Bio's revolutionary polymer brush technology. This innovation allows enzymes to maintain their remarkable catalytic properties while anchored to solid surfaces – converting them from fragile biological molecules into robust industrial catalysts that can operate in continuous flow processes.The implications are profound. While enzymes have long promised atomic precision in chemical transformations, their instability has limited industrial adoption. Cascade's technology preserves nearly 100% of enzyme activity during immobilization (compared to just 1% with conventional methods), allowing these biocatalysts to withstand higher temperatures, function in organic solvents, and operate continuously for much longer periods.Weltz walks us through real-world applications already making an impact – from nitrile hydratase producing acrylamide for rubber manufacturing to penicillin G-acylase creating antibiotics at massive scale. More exciting possibilities await, including true recycling of plastics and remediation of "forever chemicals" like PFAS. The conversation extends to multi-enzyme cascades that perform complex chemical transformations outside cells, potentially recreating cellular pathways in industrial settings.The melding of computational protein design with robust immobilization technologies may finally deliver on biotech's promise of "infinitely scalable, atomically precise" chemical manufacturing. As Welts puts it, these innovations could transform how we produce the materials our modern world depends on – making them compatible with human and planetary health.Join this deep dive into the cutting edge of industrial biocatalysis, where nature's chemical tools are being reimagined for a more sustainable future.(00:00) Introduction to Enzyme Immobilization(00:18) Welcome to the Climate Biotech Podcast(01:09) Meet James Weltz: A Leader in Enzyme Immobilization(01:43) The Potential of Enzyme Immobilization in Climate Biotech(02:21) James Weltz's Background and Early Influences(08:31) Understanding Enzyme Immobilization(10:03) The Importance and Benefits of Enzyme Immobilization(19:41) Challenges and Innovations in Enzyme Immobilization(24:10) Case Study: Lipase Enzymes(25:25) Dramatic Improvements in Enzyme Technology(25:45) Enzyme Stability and Industrial Applications(27:22) The GPT Moment for Enzyme Work(28:09) Exciting Examples of Enzyme Applications(30:48) Community Questions: AI and Enzyme Design(39:18) Challenges and Opportunities in the Enzyme Industry(41:38) Future of Enzyme Technology and Rapid Fire QuestionsSend us a text
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How to Grow Your Own Story with Erum Azeez Khan and Karl Schmieder
What happens when brilliant scientific innovation meets masterful storytelling? Marketing rarely tops the priority list for scientists and biotech founders who are deep in the technical challenges of making their innovations work. Yet without effective communication, even groundbreaking discoveries risk languishing in obscurity, unable to attract the talent, funding, and partnerships necessary to scale their impact.In this illuminating conversation, Dan Goodwin welcomes marketing experts Erum Azeez Khan and Karl Schmieder — from Messaginglab and the Grow Everything Biotech Podcast — who work with science-driven companies to elevate their stories and impact. With their unique backgrounds spanning biochemistry, creative writing, and entrepreneurship, they share insights on transforming complex scientific concepts into compelling narratives that resonate with investors, partners, and the public.Through revealing case studies like K18 Hair (which sold to Unilever for nearly $1 billion after just three years) and Cultivarium, we explore how effective scientific storytelling creates tangible business results and exame how scientific innovators must adapt their messaging to emphasize performance advantages.Whether you're a scientist, entrepreneur, investor, or simply curious about how ideas spread, this episode offers practical wisdom on making people care about innovations that could shape our collective future.(00:00) Introduction to Climate Biotech Podcast(00:35) Meet the Hosts: Dan Goodwin(00:51) Special Guests: Erum Azeez and Karl Schmeider(01:37) The Importance of Storytelling in Science(02:26) Marketing Strategies for Scientists(03:41) Getting to Know Karl and Erum(05:03) Erum's Journey from Pharma to Marketing(07:34) Karl's Path to Biotech Marketing(09:58) The Role of a Fractional CMO(14:26) Effective Storytelling Techniques(21:09) The Value of Blogging and Content Creation(24:20) The Attention Economy and Google's 7-11-4 Rule(25:11) Maximizing Content Reach Across Platforms(26:23) Case Study: K18 Hair's Science Storytelling Success(29:08) Leveraging Experts for Market Differentiation(29:57) Case Study: Verium's Strategic Growth(31:39) Shifts in Climate Biotech Narratives(37:25) The Importance of Language and Buzzwords(40:18) Rapid Fire Questions and Closing ThoughtsSend us a text
Are you fascinated by the power and potential of biotechnology? Do you want to learn about cutting-edge innovations that can address climate change? The Climate Biotech Podcast explores the most pressing problems at the intersection of climate and biology, and most importantly, how to solve them. Hosted by Dan Goodwin, a neuroscientist turned biotech enthusiast, the podcast features interviews with leading experts diving deep into topics like plant synthetic biology, mitochondrial engineering, gene editing, and more. This podcast is powered by Homeworld Collective, a non-profit whose mission is to ignite the field of climate biotechnology.
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