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.

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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.

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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 Questions

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