Improving animal nutrition and food safety at heart of research study published in Nature Microbiology

trevor.kenney — Tue, 23 Jan 2018 17:46:46 +0000

As the world grapples with the big problem of feeding 7.6 billion people, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge adjunct professor Dr. Wade Abbott of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and his team have detailed the smallest of metabolic reactions with the goal of improving food security, food safety and animal nutrition.

Drs. Wade Abbott (pictured) and Steve Mosimann, along with a trio of former U of L students, detail processes in the human gut microbiome.

Abbott and his group, which includes the Institute for Cell and Molecular Biosciences at Newcastle ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, UK, Dr. Steve Mosimann of the U of L’s Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry and a trio of former U of L students, have been looking at prominent bacteria (Bacteroides) that thrive in the human gut microbiome, and detailing what glycans (carbohydrates) they eat on our behalf and how these processes take place, step-by-step. Understanding this, Abbott says, creates opportunities to manipulate the microbiome and possibly enhance food digestibility.

“It’s not enough to know what genes are present in the microbiome, we need to know what these genes do,” he says.

His group’s latest paper on this subject was recently published in the prestigious journal Nature Microbiology.

U of L alumnus Benjamin Farnell (MSc '14) at work in the lab.

“Understanding how different glycans are put together and then how they are taken apart is really what we are trying to get at with this study. And while there have been several papers written about similar processes in recent years, usually they are dealing with one sugar, one pathway, and trying to understand how that pathway works. This paper looks at how different pathways work together to digest a very complex network of plant cell wall sugars called pectin.”

Nature is the world’s most cited interdisciplinary science journal. Abbott was part of a group of researchers who made headlines in 2015 by discovering a strain of bacteria in the human gut that had evolved to the point where it could break down complex carbohydrates found in yeast. One of his students at the time, Richard McLean (BSc ’14, MSc ’17), also contributed to this latest paper that appears in the sister journal Nature Microbiology, along with Benjamin Farnell (MSc ’14) and Kaitlyn Shearer (BSc).

“We’re looking at how we can help animals digest feedstocks better, how we can improve their performance by using agricultural residues for growth promotion, and how we can improve food safety,” says Abbott. “It’s looking at ways to try to release more nutrition from complex glycans now that we know what bacteria and enzymes are required to do that.”

Farnell took the lead in mapping out one of the four complex pathways detailed in the paper, following enzymes as they catalyze reactions along the way and how they work together.

“When he started, we believed this pathway was involved but didn’t know what any of the proteins did,” says Abbott. “He systematically went through and looked at each protein independently and then put them all together, recreating the pathway. It was quite a nice piece of research and thesis that he contributed.”

Abbott says that with a renewed interest in environmental sustainability, a great challenge is trying to improve food productivity through natural processes. Harnessing the work done by bacteria in the gut in a manner that will improve animal nutrition is one way to approach the problem.

“Finding sustainable alternatives that really optimize how the microbiome works would be a great advance,” he says.

By mapping the pathways and better understanding the role of proteins and how they interact with one another in the microbiome, researchers are that much closer to enhancing food security and safety for an ever-growing population.

Brick by Brick benefit dinner for MS Society

trevor.kenney — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 20:40:35 +0000

Exchanging lab coats for formal attire, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's iGEM team is stepping out of its comfort zone to connect with the southern Alberta community that has supported them from the outset.

The inaugural Brick by Brick Charity Dinner is Friday, Nov. 18 in the Students' Union Ballroom. Benefitting the MS Society, Lethbridge & District Chapter, the event will not only raise funds for the fight against multiple sclerosis, it will help to enhance awareness and understanding of the disease through guest speakers Susan Schneider and Dr. Gerlinde Metz.

"This is something we've wanted to do for a few years now and have finally been able to put together because of the size of our team," says iGEM member Lisza Bruder.

The Pincher Creek native is in her third year with iGEM and in the first year of her master's of biochemistry studies with Dr. Steve Mosimann. The multidisciplinary iGEM team, with support from the Synthetic Biology Club and led by Dr. HJ Wieden, has swelled to 22 members, making the establishment of a charity dinner a less daunting task.

"We felt this was a way to give back to the community that has supported us from when we started in 2007."

The iGEM group (an acronym for International Genetically Engineered Machines) already makes a significant contribution to society, albeit in a more indirect manner. Their work involves the design of a petrochemical-eating bacteria, which they proved could be used to help clean up water in oil sands tailings ponds.

The dinner project is a little more public and more direct.

"It's very difficult at times to go and talk with someone about your research and explain to them what it means," says Bruder. "We even sometimes don't see the connect between what we are doing in the lab and how it applies down the line."

To that end, U of L neuroscience professor Metz will speak to her studies as a part of the endMS project.

"Having an MS researcher from our ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ speak to the community has a huge impact," says Ann Stewart, the MS Society chapter executive director. "It demonstrates the use of donor funds as well as raises the awareness of the types of research being done to find a cause and cure for MS."

Multiple sclerosis is the most common neurological disease of young adults in Canada and currently affects over 11,000 Albertans.

In addition to Metz's address, Susan Schneider, a local resident who is living with MS, will speak to her personal experience with the disease, while Dory Rossiter will serve as the evening's emcee.

Stewart says it is important that our community's youth take up the charge for these initiatives.

"We are delighted to partner with the iGEM team," she says. "��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ students are an integral part of our community and it is always refreshing to be involved in their activities."

Tickets for the Brick by Brick Charity Dinner are priced at $50 each or $350 for a table of eight. They are available by calling 403-328-7002 or via e-mail at brickbybrick.igem@gmail.com

This story first appeared in the Legend. For a look at the November issue of the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

UNews - Steve Mosimann

Improving animal nutrition and food safety at heart of research study published in Nature Microbiology

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Brick by Brick benefit dinner for MS Society

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