Biotechnological Production of Sustainable Indole-3-Acetic Acid in Germany

I was fortunate enough to secure a DAAD RISE research internship to spend 12 weeks in the summer of 2019 at the Volker lab at Universität Bielefeld, located in the city of Bielefeld in the north-west of Germany. The focus of my research was on the biotechnological production of sustainable indole-3-acetic acid, which is part of the larger INDIE project.  The goal of the INDIE project is to produce indole via microbial fermentation and enzymatic bioconversion.

Due to rapid urbanization, our world is changing at a fast rate. In our haste to meet the needs of our ever-growing population, we are depleting natural resources at a phenomenal rate, and this has an adverse effect on the environment as well as reduces the reservoir of resources for future generations. With biotechnology, we can move into a bio-based economy. This research experience was important to me as it allowed me to contribute to this cause, by conducting research to produce chemical compounds through the bacteria Corynebacterium glutamicum, rather than extracting these compounds from coal tar. While my experience lasted only for a summer, I hope that I can carry on with this line of research in the future in order to provide resources without harming our planet.

Working in a research lab at Penn State, coupled with the courses I had taken, gave me a strong base for when I arrived in Germany. While the project had certain techniques I hadn’t learned about before, I was able to learn them quickly and hit the ground running. This allowed me to make the best use of my limited time, and contribute some results almost immediately. I definitely left more confident and as a better scientist than when I arrived for my internship.

My expectation was that I would learn some new scientific techniques and how to work with a new organism, but this experience turned out to be so much more. I got to learn more about the applications of biotechnology through the INDIE project, how to work in a large and diverse group, and how to apply classroom knowledge to unique research.  I also faced a few problems with some of my experiments, which forced me to think independent and critically on how to proceed. Under the guidance of my mentor, Tatjana Walter, I started developing a deeper understanding of the science behind my project, as well as becoming more patient and less frustrated when things do not work out as I had hoped. Outside the lab, I got to live in a new country and experience a new culture. The hardworking nature of the German people has also inspired me to work hard towards my future goals, which involves partaking in biotechnological research.