Speaker
Description
Technological progress and social change are causing an increasing demand for raw materials and a reassessment of traditional methods of resource extraction and waste management. Challenged by environmental impacts and decreasing metal concentrations, traditional mining practices are increasingly seen as unsustainable. This situation is exacerbated by the increasing complexity of primary and secondary raw material sources and decreasing metal content, emphasizing the urgent need for innovative solutions to ensure long-term economic and environmentally sustainable resource provision. Biomining strategies such as biosorption are promising for advancing the circular economy, enabling sustainable resource recovery, and significantly reducing pollution through more effective management of mining and landfill waste.
Among the available biosorption technologies, peptide-based biosorbents are particularly promising. These biosorbents are developed using advanced biotechnological tools such as phage surface display and contain specific peptides that selectively bind the desired metal ions. This precision is critical for the recovery of valuable metals from complex waste streams such as industrial wastewater and e-waste, supporting the principles of the circular economy and improving resource sustainability.
Our research focuses on the development of metal-binding peptides to improve metal recovery processes. Using high-throughput screening and next-generation sequencing, we identify peptides with high specificity and affinity for metals such as cobalt, nickel, arsenic, and others. Using isothermal titration microcalorimetry, these interactions are analyzed in detail, which contributes to understanding binding mechanisms and the optimization of the biosorption process. The newly established junior research group Pep2Rec aims to further develop these biotechnological advances. Pep2Rec aims to refine directed evolution methods to improve the recovery of metals from non-aqueous solutions. This includes the development of specialized peptide libraries and their application in novel biocomposites for membrane filtration technologies. These initiatives are expected to create a robust framework for a circular economy in sectors with significant potential for improving resource efficiency.
| Acknowledgement of financial support | Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung |
|---|
