The biology and biotechnological potential of marine fungi bioprocessing. (Ref: 4284)

Fungi are generally well-established bioprocessors with the ability to degrade and assimilate a broad range of biomass substrates and subsequently produce a wide variety of valuable biological resources.
Marine fungi represent a novel and currently understudied resource for bioprocessing, both in terms of their fundamental underpinning biology and biotechnological applications. This PhD project will explore and study the bioprocessing potential of marine fungi from the recently established marine fungi culture collection at the Marine Biological Association (MBA) in Plymouth. Over 400 yeast and hyphal strains are available from a range of temperate and polar marine environments, including the deep open ocean and sea ice.
In summary, the PhD project will screen the marine fungi culture collection, using a high-throughput approach, identifying specific fungal strain and substrate combinations of interest. The strain/substrates combinations will be studied in terms of underpinning biological mechanisms (e.g. substrate attachment and enzyme production) and potential biotechnological application (e.g. biomolecule production).