Applied biocatalysis

The course aims to provide students with theoretical knowledge and applicative skills about biocatalytic processes. Biocatalysis is the use of natural catalysts (enzymes) to perform reactions of interest in all fields of green chemistry. To understand and develop a biocatalytic process is thus necessary to gather tools across different biotechnological techniques.
Knowledge and understanding:
· Knowing the methodologies (protein engineering, metabolic engineering, immobilization, continuous processes) useful for making a biocatalytic process of industrial interest;
· Understanding the advantages of biocatalysis in the context of the bioeconomy and chemical transformation;
· Understanding why biocatalysis is strategic in a bio-based industry context;
· Knowing and understanding consolidated and/or recent successful examples (especially in the agri-food and energy fields) of applied biocatalysis
· Knowing the techniques involved in the immobilization of biocatalysts;
· Knowing and understanding the importance of process intensification in applied biocatalysis.
Applying knowledge and understanding
· Applying biotechnological techniques (mostly learned in other courses) for the evolution of enzymes or microbial cells into efficient biocatalysts;
· Assessing the most suited technologies for intensifying a biocatalytic process;
· Applying the knowledge about consolidated and/or recent successful examples of applied biocatalysis to critically design and optimize biocatalytic processes;
· Assessing the most useful techniques for intensifying a biocatalytic process.
Making judgements
· Applying the knowledge about biocatalyst immobilization for making proper judgements when and how immobilization techniques should be used in biocatalytic processes;
· Making judgements about the best way to discover and optimize a biocatalyst;
· Making judgements about the best bioreactors to be used in biocatalysis

At the end of the course the student will know why biocatalysis is strategic for the bioeconomy in a bio-based industry context. The student will be familiar with the essential steps in the development of biocatalytic processes from concept to completion, by the application of the best suited methodologies (protein engineering, metabolic engineering, immobilization, continuous reactors) to develop a innovative biocatalytic processes of industrial interest. The focus will be on bioprocesses relevant in the agri-food and bioenergy fields.