SBIR-STTR Award

Recent advances in biotechnology and molecular biology have brought about new concerns in protein purification. The protein purification knowledge base addresses some of these issues by providing new computer-readable protein purification databases coupled with an expert system to suggest protocols for purifying new proteins. Experimental data will be scanned, digitized, and analyzed for relevant information that the expert system can use to update the working purification strategy. This knowledge base system can decrease the costs of developing new biotechnology products by optimizing the development of large-scale protein purification processes and by using the expertise of key protein purification personnel more efficiently. In addition, a subset of the knowledge base can be used to train students in protein purification techniques. The purification databases will also be distributed independently of the expert system and will be updated on a regular basis.

Anticipated Results:
This research will be used to develop the following products for academic and industrial biochemical laboratories: protein databases, a turnkey protein purification knowledge base, and a computer-aided instruction system for biochemistry students.National Institute Of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)

Basic and applied biochemical researchers rely on many different types of information to plan and perform experiments, however, computers are used infrequently as a source of this knowledge. Our protein purification knowledge base will provide new computer-readable databases coupled with an expert system to guide biochemists to use the data more effectively in daily research. The databases will contain experimental protein data, historical purification protocols and reference data while the expert system represents rules for planning and using protein purification techniques. The system can be sued as a reference source by experienced biochemists, as a research tool by all medical researchers and as a training tool for novices and students. The databases and a query interface will be distributed independently of the fully integrated protein purification workstation.Awardee's statement of the potential commercial applications of the research:This research will develop the following products for academic and industrial biotechnology laboratories: protein databases, a protein purification knowledge base, and a computer-aided instruction system for protein purification.National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)