Proteins and peptides for industry
Proteins, as biobased and environmentally friendly products, are used in many industries, e.g., in food and beverage industry, in cosmetics and detergents, in the chemicals industry and many more. The range of potential markets is huge, however, the tailored production of proteins for industrial purposes has its technical challenges. To manage these challenges, we combine technologies and expertise from diverse disciplines, such as molecular biology, protein-engineering and synthetic biology.

Proteins, Peptides & Enzymes
Proteins are ubiquitous biological macromolecules that are made of long, linked chains of amino acids which are linked by peptide bonds. Short amino acid chains are called peptides. Proteins serve all living organisms as tools and materials for executing different tasks. Some proteins, called enzymes, catalyze chemical reactions by lowering their activation energy. In contrast to chemical catalysis, some enzymes are stereo-specific and, hence, allow the evolution of only one stereoisomeric bond out of two or more possible bonds. From this reaction, only one possible product configuration is established, which is entirely biodegradable, and which does not produce byproducts. Through this process, less resources are required for the purification of the products and disposal of enzymes, leading to a decreased environmental impact. Not only is the environmental impact lowered, but bioconversion is often more efficient and more cost-effective, compared to chemical procedures. In addition, a great number of enzymes is already bed down in industrial applications.
Networks
-
Advanced Proteins
We can find proteins anywhere in nature in abundance. This class of molecules has many different functions, for instance as catalysts,…
-
Technofunctional Proteins — TeFuProt
The TeFuProt project partners intend to isolate proteins from agricultural residual plant materials, especially from canola oil production.…
News
-
What does it mean if our economy works without fossil raw materials such as oil and gas? The logical answer is that we will have to create value almost exclusively with biological, renewable…
-
A research team from the University of Freiburg led by biochemist Prof. Dr. Oliver Einsle has discovered how the “Shethna protein II” protects the nitrogen-binding enzyme nitrogenase from damage.
-
Defossilising the chemicals and derived materials sector is a critical and urgent challenge for industrialisation and delivering the EU’s goal of becoming climate neutral by 2050.
-
Paludicultures such as peat moss, reed and reed canary grass are already used as construction materials, animal feed and foodstuff.
-
ATB in Potsdam does pioneering work: Artificially produced humic substances for agriculture
13.01.2025NewsFast, controlled and from residual materials: Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB) is driving forward global research into the artificial production of humic substances…
-
The Scale-up Accelerator Network is a program that connects start-ups with experienced industry experts who perform an independent assessment and provide targeted support in scaling up industrial…
Events
-
27. — 28 June 2022 | Munich
-
18. ‑19 May 2022 | Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina Halle (Saale)
-
22th — 23th February 2023 I Düsseldorf