DIT PhD Project
Supervisor name & contact details:
Name Barry Ryan, Gary Henehan
Tel
Email Gary.Henehan@dit.ie
Research Centre:
School of Food Science and Environmental
Health
Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland.
Research Centre website:
http://www.dit.ie/fseh/
Link to Supervisor’s Publications
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Gary Henehan
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Barry Ryan
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Brief summary of research centre activity:
In our School we carry out a broad range of research from Food Innovation to Nutraceuticals,
Pharmaceuticals and Environmental Health.
Research is broadly in the area of human health and its interaction with Food and the
Environment.
Title & brief description of PhD project :
Nutraceuticals from Nanoparticle Immobilised Enzymes
Nutraceuticals are food components that have a health benefit above and beyond their basic
nutritional value. A well known example is the health benefits of Resveratrol which has positive
impacts on a range of disease states from diabetes to heart disease, cancer, inflammatory disease
etc.
Some recent work in our laboratory has focussed on using enzymes to synthesise food flavour
compounds (see: Purification and properties of Amycolatopsis mediterranei DSM 43304 lipase
and its potential in flavor ester synthesis; Dharmendra S Dheeman, Gary TM Henehan, and Jesus
M Frías. Bioresour Technol 102(3):7 2011, as an example). We have now extended this work to
the synthesis of new Nutraceutical compounds. In particular, we have explored the modification
of stilbenoids with sugar molecules using transglucosidase enzymes.
This type of synthesis is often limited by the stability of the enzymes used at extreme
temperatures or in certain solvent mixtures. The immobilisation of enzymes on nanoparticles
offers the prospect of greatly increasing the stability of enzymes at high temperatures in solvents.
In this project we will explore the immobilisation of enzymes on nanoparticles and the
application of immobilised enzyme in synthesis of novel Nutraceuticals. This work will involve
several discrete stages:
1. Immobilisation of glucosidases on nanoparticles (a range of supports to be examined)
2. Characterisation of immobilised enzyme stability, efficacy and kinetics
3. Application of immobilised enzyme in synthesis of novel modified stilbenoids by
transglucosidation and related reactions. Initial studies will focus on synthesis of
resveratrol derivatives for enhanced bioavailability.
Preliminary work in this laboratory suggests that dramatic stabilisation of enzymes can be
achieved using nanoparticle immobilisation.
Ciência sem Fronteiras / Science Without Borders Priority Area:
Biotechnology