IGEM:Harvard/2006/Brainstorming with William

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What are the synonyms for containers?
Use these terms for web searches investigating potential applications of molecular containers
 * Capsules
 * Containers
 * Encapsulation
 * Vaults
 * Viruses
 * Vehicles
 * Vesicles
 * Liposomes
 * Vessels
 * Boxes
 * Compartments

What are the enabling features? (Can be optional features)
These are general capabilities for which there may or may not exist demand outside the field
 * Rigid or defined structure
 * Getting things in and out
 * Non-porous &rarr; doesn't leak in or out
 * Allows one to maintain different microenvironments (inside versus outside)
 * Allows multiplexed microenvironments
 * Selective permeability
 * Ability to fuse or separate
 * Caging and release
 * Controlled release
 * Specific targeting of container to destination
 * Robotics

What are potential applications for containers?
These are applications for which one suspects there may be demand in the outside community
 * Drug and gene delivery
 * Issues
 * Slow down the clearance time in plasma and intracellularly
 * Size of pores
 * Getting into cell
 * Directed evolution (compartmentalized selections)
 * Chemical synthesis
 * Increase effective concentration of reactants
 * Using multiplexing for combinatorial synthesis
 * Protein folding (chaperone)
 * Capture and stabilization of multiprotein complexes
 * Marker scavenging
 * Cell sorting (gattaca technology)

What are demand-meeting applications for containers?
Can move items from the "potential applications" list down to this list when you can find specific examples (i.e. names of molecules involved) where a demand exists for this application; for many people, this is the only list that matters

How exactly to implement container and lid?
Biotin/streptavinin docking?

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