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Brian Mickus

Contact Info

Office: Bldg. 56-454
Phone: 617-253-0472
Fax: 617-258-6876
Email: bmickus@mit.edu

Education:

B.S.E. Chemical Engineering (2003), Princeton University; M.S. Chemical Engineering Practice, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2005

Thesis Title:

Genomic and Proteomic Analysis of Lycopene-Overproducing Escherichia coli Strains

Research Description:

Systems biology represents a powerful method to describe and manipulate phenotypes of interest by incorporating biological information from various levels of cellular organization. Such an approach is illustrated from a library of both rationally-directed and combinatorial gene knockout strains of E. coli recombinantly producing the small molecule lycopene. Global genomic and proteomic expression changes associated with increased lycopene production of mutant E. coli constructs were discovered using whole-genome E. coli DNA microarrays and a novel LC-MS technique, respectively, and then analyzed together. Overall, it appears that a number of factors which are small to moderate individually may together result in the observed lycopene production phenotypes.

Publications

Mickus, B.E., Silva, J.C., Vissers, J.P.C., Stephanopoulos, G., and Cooney, C.L. “Genomic and Proteomic Analysis of Lycopene-Overproducing E. coli Strains” (MIT, Cambridge, MA, and Waters Corporation, Milford, MA). Paper in preparation.

McAllister, S.R., Mickus, B.E., Klepeis, J.L., and Floudas, C.A (2006). “Novel Approach for alpha-helical topology prediction in globular proteins: Generation of interhelical restraints.” Proteins: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics 65: 930.