During her PhD studies, Mireia Casanovas Montasell developed new methods for the synthesis of proenzymes, the inactive form of enzymes, based on the chemistry of thiols. Mireia studied on-demand reactivation of these artificial proenzymes by addition of different activators, taking advantage of the different characteristics that each design offered. This method was demonstrated for several proteins containing a cysteine in their structure, which in each case were conjugated through a disulfide bond to a chemical group, in order to block catalytic activity. By addition of a thiolated molecule, these bonds were cleaved, and the free active enzymes were recovered.
These findings represent a contribution in the field of synthetic biology, for the generation of synthetic cells, as well as in biotechnology for biosensing applications and manufacturing processes.

The PhD study was completed at Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Aarhus University.

This summary was prepared by the PhD student.

Time: Friday, 24^th January 2025 at 10:00.
Place: Building 1593, room 012, Lecture Theatre iNano Auditorium, iNano, Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus.
Title of PhD thesis: Zymogens for the Protein Cysteinome ‒ Synthesis of proenzymes for on-demand activation of catalysis.
Contact information: Mireia Casanovas Montasell, e-mail: mireia.cm@chem.au.dk, tel.: +45 52529762
Members of the assessment committee:
Professor Barbara Saccà, Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
Professor Andreas Walther, Department of Chemistry, University of Mainz, Germany.
Associate Professor Marianne Glasius (chair), Department of Chemistry, Aarhus University, Denmark.
Main supervisor:
Professor Alexander N. Zelikin, Department of Chemistry, Aarhus University, Denmark.
Language: The PhD dissertation will be defended in English

The defence is public.
The PhD thesis is available for reading at the Graduate School of Natural Sciences/GSNS, Ny Munkegade 120, building 1521, 8000 Aarhus C