User:Jonathan Cline/Notebook/Melaminometer/Technical Summary

Technical Summary of Melamine Detector
Melamine can be metabolized by biochemical/enzymatic process in bacteria and/or other compatible organisms. Using recombinant DNA techniques, plasmids containing genes encoding specific enzymes will be used to modify the target organism (aka: the chassis). There may be one to four enzymes required for metabolism to desired products.

Metabolic Pathway
melamine --(1)--> ammeline --(2)--> ammelide --(3)--> cyanuric acid

cyanuric acid --(4)--> biuret --(5)--> allophante --(6)--> 2 NH3 + some CO2


 * (1): melamine deaminase:triA  --^ NH4+ + H2O
 * (2): ammeline aminohydralase:triA  --^ NH4+ + H2O
 * (3): ammelide aminohydralase:trzC  --^ NH4+ + H2O
 * (4): atzD/trzD  --^ NH4+ + H2O
 * (5): atzE
 * (6): atzF

Detection Threshold
From the U.S. FDA standards,
 * a level of melamine and its analogues above 2.5 mg/kg is indicative of food adulteration.
 * This 2.5 ppm represents consumption of 0.063 mg/kg bw/d.

The threshold needed for detection is (x mMol) or no greater than 2.5 ppm.

Logical operation
Desired logical operation:

if [ melamine plus cyanuric acid > threshold ] then amplify express RFP ; or other reporter stop else repress RFP ; or other reporter stop endif