Team:Oxford/ouridea

Dichloromethane (DCM) is a widely-used organic solvent. It is a suspected carcinogen and may cause organ damage through prolonged or repeated exposure, as well as having long-lasting adverse effects on the environment. Current disposal procedures involve incineration, leading to further pollution.

Small-scale use of DCM, for example as the main component of paint strippers, is particularly problematic. Proper disposal procedures are frequently neglected because of the associated expenses and inconvenience, resulting in harmful amounts of DCM being poured down drains, accumulating in waters, where it has a half-life of over 700 years.

Our project aims to develop a safe and simple bioremediation kit based on the bacterium Methylobacterium extorquens DM4. This strain can metabolise DCM via the enzyme DCM dehalogenase, encoded by the gene dcmA. Our DCMation system would allow the untrained user to safely degrade small amounts of DCM. A visual reporter system will signal the absence of DCM without need for specialised equipment, and tell the user when the solution can simply be poured down the drain.

In order to adequately design, develop, and characterise our DCMation system, we have divided the project into four parts. For the extensive modelling aspects of our project, please see the relevant ‘modelling’ tabs.