People_
Dr Constance Bailey
Senior Lecturer of Chemical and Synthetic Biology
Address
G08 - Biochemistry and Microbiology Building
The University of Sydney
Details
Member of The Centre for Drug Discovery Innovation
Member of The University of Sydney Nano Institute
Websites
- B.A. Reed College, 2010
- PhD University of Texas at Austin, 2015
- National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of California, Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2016-2018
- Assistant Professor, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, 2018-2023
- Senior Lecturer, University of Sydney, 2023-Present
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Synthetic Biology of Natural Products
My lab focuses on harnessing biology via the discovery of new chemical transformations from nature and the manipulation of biosynthetic pathways to create new complex molecules via heterologous expression. We essentially do our chemistry within microorganisms. We focus on complex biosynthetic enzymes such as polyketide synthases and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases which biosynthesize therapeutic molecules, many of which are used in the clinic. This research has applications in medicine, sustainability, and expanded biomanufacturing.
- Development of cell free expression tools for prototypying pathway design
- Genetic tool development for heterologous expression in Actinobacteria and Myxobacteria
- Polyketide synthase and non-ribosomal peptide synthetase enzymology
- Directed evolution for late stage functionalization of natural product scaffolds
- Heterologous expression of biosynthetic pathways
- Discovery and development of natural product leads that target the cell surface of antimicrobially resistant pathogens
- Member: Sydney Infectuous Diseases Institute
- Member: Sydney Drug Discovery Initiative
- Member: Sydney Nano
- Associate Investigator: ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology
- Associate Investigator: ARC Centre of Excellence in Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science
- Organizing Committee Member: RACI NSW Bioactive Discovery and Development Group
- Member: SynBio Australasia
- Member: American Chemical Society
- Member: Royal Australian Chemical Institute
- University of Tennessee Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Faculty Mentor (2023)
- National Institutes of Health Ruth L. Kirschtein National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship (2018)
- University of Texas at Austin GK-12 Graduate Fellowship (2013)
- Commendation for Academic Excellence, Reed College (2010)
| Project title | Research student |
|---|---|
| Cell free expression (CFE) platform | Nida AHMED |
| Efficient Expression of Cacaoidin through CFPS and Research on Its Antibacterial Activity and Mechanism | Qinzhou CAI |
Publications
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Book Chapters
- Drufva, E., Sword, T., Bailey, C. (2022). Metabolic engineering of actinomycetes for natural product discovery. Natural Products from Actinomycetes: Diversity, Ecology and Drug Discovery, (pp. 267-307). Germany: Springer Nature. [More Information]
Journals
- Sword, T., Abbas, G., Bailey, C. (2024). Cell-free protein synthesis for nonribosomal peptide synthetic biology. Frontiers in Natural Products, 3, 2813-2602. [More Information]
- West, A., Bailey, C. (2023). Crosstalk between primary and secondary metabolism: Interconnected fatty acid and polyketide biosynthesis in prokaryotes. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 91, 129377. [More Information]
- Sword, T., Barker, J., Spradley, M., Chen, Y., Petzold, C., Bailey, C. (2023). Expression of blue pigment synthetase a from Streptomyces lavenduale reveals insights on the effects of refactoring biosynthetic megasynthases for heterologous expression in Escherichia coli. Protein Expression and Purification, 210. [More Information]
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2024
- Sword, T., Abbas, G., Bailey, C. (2024). Cell-free protein synthesis for nonribosomal peptide synthetic biology. Frontiers in Natural Products, 3, 2813-2602. [More Information]
2023
- West, A., Bailey, C. (2023). Crosstalk between primary and secondary metabolism: Interconnected fatty acid and polyketide biosynthesis in prokaryotes. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 91, 129377. [More Information]
- Sword, T., Barker, J., Spradley, M., Chen, Y., Petzold, C., Bailey, C. (2023). Expression of blue pigment synthetase a from Streptomyces lavenduale reveals insights on the effects of refactoring biosynthetic megasynthases for heterologous expression in Escherichia coli. Protein Expression and Purification, 210. [More Information]
- Dinglasan, J., Sword, T., Barker, J., Doktycz, M., Bailey, C. (2023). Investigating and Optimizing the Lysate-Based Expression of Nonribosomal Peptide Synthetases Using a Reporter System. ACS Synthetic Biology, 12(5), 1447-1460. [More Information]
2022
- Drufva, E., Sword, T., Bailey, C. (2022). Metabolic engineering of actinomycetes for natural product discovery. Natural Products from Actinomycetes: Diversity, Ecology and Drug Discovery, (pp. 267-307). Germany: Springer Nature. [More Information]
2021
- Drufva, E., Spengler, N., Hix, E., Bailey, C. (2021). Site-Directed Mutagenesis of Modular Polyketide Synthase Ketoreductase Domains for Altered Stereochemical Control. ChemBioChem, 22(7), 1122-1150. [More Information]
2020
- Zargar, A., Lal, R., Valencia, L., Wang, J., Backman, T., Cruz-Morales, P., Kothari, A., Werts, M., Wong, A., Bailey, C., et al (2020). Chemoinformatic-Guided Engineering of Polyketide Synthases. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 142(22), 9896-9901. [More Information]
- Drufva, E., Hix, E., Bailey, C. (2020). Site directed mutagenesis as a precision tool to enable synthetic biology with engineered modular polyketide synthases. Synthetic and Systems Biotechnology, 5(2), 62-80. [More Information]
2019
- Barajas, J., Wehrs, M., To, M., Cruickshanks, L., Urban, R., McKee, A., Gladden, J., Goh, E., Brown, M., Pierotti, D., et al (2019). Isolation and characterization of bacterial cellulase producers for biomass deconstruction: A microbiology laboratory course. Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education, 20(2). [More Information]
2018
- Eng, C., Backman, T., Bailey, C., Magnan, C., Garcia Martin, H., Katz, L., Baldi, P., Keasling, J. (2018). ClusterCAD: A computational platform for type i modular polyketide synthase design. Nucleic Acids Research, 46(D1), D509-D515. [More Information]
- Thompson, M., Sedaghatian, N., Barajas, J., Wehrs, M., Bailey, C., Kaplan, N., Hillson, N., Mukhopadhyay, A., Keasling, J. (2018). Isolation and characterization of novel mutations in the pSC101 origin that increase copy number. Scientific Reports, 8(1). [More Information]
2017
- Barajas, J., Blake-Hedges, J., Bailey, C., Curran, S., Keasling, J. (2017). Engineered polyketides: Synergy between protein and host level engineering. Synthetic and Systems Biotechnology, 2(3), 147-166. [More Information]
- Yuzawa, S., Bailey, C., Fujii, T., Jocic, R., Barajas, J., Benites, V., Baidoo, E., Chen, Y., Petzold, C., Katz, L., et al (2017). Heterologous Gene Expression of N-Terminally Truncated Variants of LipPks1 Suggests a Functionally Critical Structural Motif in the N-terminus of Modular Polyketide Synthase. ACS Chemical Biology, 12(11), 2725-2729. [More Information]
- Zargar, A., Bailey, C., Haushalter, R., Eiben, C., Katz, L., Keasling, J. (2017). Leveraging microbial biosynthetic pathways for the generation of 'drop-in' biofuels. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 45, 156-163. [More Information]
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2016
- Bailey, C., Pasman, M., Keatinge-Clay, A. (2016). Substrate structure-activity relationships guide rational engineering of modular polyketide synthase ketoreductases. Chemical Communications, 52(4), 792-795. [More Information]
2014
- Brantley, J., Bailey, C., Cannon, J., Clark, K., Vandenbout, D., Brodbelt, J., Keatinge-Clay, A., Bielawski, C. (2014). Mechanically modulating the photophysical properties of fluorescent protein biocomposites for ratio- and intensiometric sensors. Angewandte Chemie - International Edition, 53(20), 5088-5092. [More Information]
2013
- Brantley, J., Bailey, C., Wiggins, K., Keatinge-Clay, A., Bielawski, C. (2013). Mechanobiochemistry: Harnessing biomacromolecules for force-responsive materials. Polymer Chemistry, 4(14), 3916-3928. [More Information]
2012
- Harper, A., Bailey, C., Edwards, A., Detelich, J., Keatinge-Clay, A. (2012). Preparative, in Vitro Biocatalysis of Triketide Lactone Chiral Building Blocks. ChemBioChem, 13(15), 2200-2203. [More Information]
Selected Grants
2024
- SABA Program Funding 2024, Bailey C, Centre for Drug Discovery Innovation/SABA Discovery Funding
2023
- Discovery of Novel Antibiotics from the Biodiversity of Australia that Target the Bacterial Outer Membrane, Bailey C, Sydney Institute for Infectious Diseases (Sydney ID)/Sydney ID Seed Grants
In the media
Oil companies are going all-in on petrochemicals--and green chemistry needs help to compete, the Conversation (republished to over 28 outlets including Salon.com)
Featured in Deutsche Welleshort video on petroleum products in the cosmetic industry and alteratives (including bio-based).