Margit Winkler is fascinated by the power of natural biocatalysts for chemical synthesis. Many of the reactions that one may want to use for the preparation of organic molecules have not yet been developed, or have some limitations such as: the need for highly complicated and expensive catalysts, multiple steps or they simply suffer from low selectivity.

The overall theme of Margit's research is to find new and alternative ways to catalyse a transformation by using enzymes. Sometimes, the goal is to determine the scope and limitations of an enzyme and possibly its engineering towards desired characteristics to overcome these limitations. Other times, it is the discovery and detailed study of enzymes that are not well known yet, in order to understand them better and to determine whether and how they could become applicable for synthesis. And finally, a particular product may be in the focus of the studies and the goal is then to find the best way to prepare it.

Due to this broad portfolio of interests and needs, enzymes, substrates, products and methods that have been in the focus of the team over the years, it is essential to collaborate vividly and connect the knowledge of diverse fields. 

• May 2017 - April 2020 - FFG Industrienahe Dissertation:  Carboxylic Acid Reductases for Enzymatic Reduction of organic Acids to Aldehydes (CARERAA)

  In this project, we investigate CARs in depth with a focus on process relevant parameters.

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• January 2017 - December 2018 - OeAD Project ZA 17/2017: Plant hydroxynitrile lyase diversity and application in industrial biocatalysis

  The goal of this project is to discover new enzymes from South African resources in collaboration with Prof. Karl Rumbold, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

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• November 2015 - October 2018 - FWF Project P 28477-B21: Catalytic cascades for selective aldehyde syntheses in vivo

  The main goal of this project is to understand the requirements and limitations of microbial cells for aldehyde synthesis. The synthesis of target products– chiral fragrance aldehydes – will be tackled by a combination of chemo-catalysis with a multi-enzymatic in vivo cascade reaction. This is a joint project with Dr. Florian Rudroff, Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry, TUVienna

  Project website: http://www.invivocascades.com

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• March 2015 - February 2019 - FWF Elise-Richter-Fellowship V415-B21: Biocatalytic Carboxylate reduction
  
  
  

   

  The aim of this project is to get a better understanding of carboxylate reducing enzymes to enable the development of cell factories for the selective enzymatic preparation of aldehydes. We would like to know more about the structure-function relationship of this enzyme class and to identify more of these enzymes on amino acid level.

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• April 2015 - March 2019 - Horizon2020 Project ROBOX: Grant agreement #635734
  
  
  
  The project title is Expanding the industrial use of Robust Oxidative Biocatalysts for the conversion and production of alcohols and our interest is to apply the combined knowledge and the analytical toolbox for the analysis of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to characterize oxidizing enzymes from the project partners.

  This project is carried out within acib in close collaboration with Prof. Anton Glieder (TUGraz) and DSM Chemical Technology R&D BV.

   

  The research for this work has received funding from the European Union (EU) project ROBOX (grant agreement n° 635734) under  EU’s Horizon 2020 Programme  Research and Innovation actions H2020-LEIT BIO-2014-1

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• January 2108 - December 2018 - OeAD ASEA/UNINET: Crystallization of fungal carboxylate reductase
  The goal of this project is to collaborate with Prof. Farah Diba Abu Bakar, University Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia.
  
  

• December 2012 - November 2015 - FP7 Project KYROBIO: Grant agreement no: 289646

  
  
  The project title is The discovery, development and demonstration of biocatalysts for use in the industrial synthesis of chiral chemicals and our interest was to identify a new class of hydroxynitrile lyases. We found a very promising enzyme in the fern Davallia teyermanii and characterized it in detail.

  	This project was carried out within acib in close collaboration with Prof. Karl Gruber (UniGraz), Prof. Ruth Birner-Grünberger (ZMF and Omics Centre) and Dr. Gerhard Thallinger (TUGraz).

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• April 2014 - June 2015 - acib Project 84.011: Reverse nitrilase: From ammonium plus carboxylic acid to amine precursors

  The aim was to explore the substrate scope of enzymes that can convert a carboxylic acid to a nitrile.

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• January 2010 - December 2014 - acib Project 1.4-2: Enzymatic API Modification; Non-CYP drug metabolizing enzymes

  The aim was to make human drug metabolizing enzymes available in microbial hosts so that it is possible to prepare authentic human drug metabolites on the preparative scale.

  This project is carried out within acib in close collaboration with Novartis and F.Hoffmann-LaRoche.

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• January 2010 - December 2014 - acib Project 1.5-1: Amines and Peptides; Generation of efficient production strains for chiral amine synthesis

  The aim was to provide robust enzymes and yeast strains for the production of chiral amines.

  This project is carried out within acib in close collaboration with Prof. Anton Glieder, Dr. Andrea Camattari (TUGraz) and Ingenza Ltd.

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• January 2010 - December 2014 - acib Projects 1.2 and 4.12: Enzymatic Nitrile Reduction

  In this project we cloned, mutagenized and provided nitrile reductase enzymes to project partners with the aim to broaden its substrate specificity.

  This project is carried out within acib in close collaboration with Prof. Norbert Klempier, Prof. Bernd Nidetzky (TUGraz) and Prof. Karl Gruber (UniGraz).

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• January 2010 - June 2013 - acib Project 4.2-3: Enzyme engineering for complex reactions; Identification, expression and engineering of new complex microbial oxidoreductases

  The aim was to find enzymes for the reduction or oxidation of industrially relevant compounds.

  This project is carried out within acib in close collaboration with Prof. Helmut Schwab, Prof. Peter Macheroux (TUGraz) and Lonza AG.

• Melissa Horvat
  PhD thesis
  Working title:Carboxylic Acid Reductases for Enzymatic Reduction of organic Acids to Aldehydes
  

• Daniel Schwendenwein
  PhD thesis
  Working title:Catalytic cascades for aldehyde synthesis in vivo
  
  
• Philippe Oberhemm
  Master thesis
  Working title: Characterization of new carboxylate reductase enzymes
  
  
• Holly Stolterfoht
  Master thesis
  Working title: Characterization and engineering of Carboxylate reductase
  
  
• David Gradischnig
  Bachelor thesis
  Working title: Towards structure elucidation of Neurospora crassa CAR domains
  
  
• Bianca Kerschbaumer
  Master thesis
  Working title: Characterization and improvement of CYP505 expressing biocatalysts
  
  
• Melissa Willim
  Master thesis
  Working title: CYP450 and its importance in Drug Development
  
  
• Lena Gsöls
  Bachelor thesis
  Working title: Lyophilization of E. coli and Pichia pastoris strains expressing Cytochrome P450 enzymes

• Bettina Schweda
  Bachelor Thesis
  Studies towards the Synthesis of Capsaicin and its Bioconversion using CYP 505
  January 2018
  
  
• Lukas Kargl
  Bachelor thesis
  Kinetic characterization of CYP505 expressing biocatalysts
  October 2017

• Katharina Dokulil
  Master Thesis
  Cloning, expression and characterization of 7-cyano-7-deazaguanine synthases
  May 2016

• Thorsten Bachler
  Bachelor Thesis
  Human enzymes for organic synthesis
  April 2016

• Elisa Lanfranchi
  PhD Thesis
  New Hydroxynitrile Lyase from white Rabbit's Foot Fern: The route from discovery to perspectives for applications
  Nov 2015
• Kamila Napora-Wijata
  PhD Thesis
  Identification and expression of new microbial oxidoreductases
  February 2014
  
• Thomas Prossliner
  Bachelor Thesis
  Characterization of a short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase from unconventional yeast Yarrowia lipolytica
  May 2013

• Dr. Florian Rudroff - www.ias.tuwien.ac.at/florianrudroff/ 
• Prof. Karl Gruber - www.uni-graz.at/karl.gruber/ 
• Prof. Ruth Birner-Grünberger - www.medunigraz.at/DK_MCD/Faculty_Birner-Gruenberger.htm 
• Prof. Rolf Breinbauer, Prof Norbert Klempier, Prof. Hansjörg Weber, Prof Tanja Wrodnigg - www.orgc.tugraz.at/index.php/wbPage/wbShow/USER12 
• bisy e.U. 
• F. Hoffmann-LaRoche - www.roche.com   
• Bio-Prodict - www.bio-prodict.nl 
• Prof. Karl Rumbold
• Prof. Farah Diba Abu Bakar