1. Prof. Roman Jerala Department of synthetic biology and immunology National institute of chemsitry, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Expertise in:
Synthetic biology of mammalian cells – design of genetic circuits to control celllar response to selected external or internal stimuli, particularly using designed DNA binding domains, engineering cells for production of growth factor combinations
Innate immunity – molecular mechnism of inflammation, TLR signaling pathways, MyD88 signaling, endogenous activators via oxidative stress, exracellular vesicle delivery
Designed polypeptide based bionanomaterials - molecular cages for encapsulation and delivery, protein lattice
Fluorescent and confocal microscopy (Leica systems), bioluminescence, fluorescence, flow cytometry and sorting, circular dichrosims, particle size determination (DLS, SEC-MALS), cell encapsulation, LC-MS, recombinant šprotein production and characterization, CRISPR-Cas9 to edit genome abnd regulate gene transcription

2. Expected benefits and activities during participation in BIONECA:
Offer expertise in engineering control and safety into therapeutic cells
Collabrate on the design of biomaterials for applications in cell therapy
Find partners interested in performing in vivo studies to test engineered cellular devices
Would like to participate in partnerships for EU and other project applications
Foreseen maximum contribution: in WG1 & WG4