https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/3e56362b-0fdc-4554-b099-5bb022aafe3d Title: Nulfur: Sustainable Crude Oil Processing Through Engineered Biodesulfurization Description: 70% of crude oil is sour, rich in toxic sulfur compounds such as dibenzothiophene. Refineries remove these by hydrodesulfurization, an energy- and hydrogen-intensive process leaving spent catalyst as hazardous waste. Our project, Nulfur, develops a biodesulfurization alternative using the 4S pathway in engineered Pseudomonas putida. We developed Cofactor, an agentic AI tool guiding mutagenesis of bottleneck enzymes DszB and DszC. We sanitized broad-host-range plasmid pBBR1mcs-2 for Golden Gate assembly and confirmed expression in E. coli and P. putida. To optimize activity, we built and characterized modular Golden Gate-compatible promoter blocks spanning a graded expression range, designed a 24-member library tuning dszA–dszD, assembled eight, and detected desulfurization activity from one. Because metabolic burden caps single-strain throughput, we modelled a consortium where partner strains supply rhamnolipid and formate, relieving identified substrate-availability and NADH limits. Ultimately, Nulfur delivers cleaner oil processing while providing a framework for designing synthetic consortia for future applications. Wiki | Official Page Thu, 29 Oct 2026 22:23:40 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://video.igem.org https://video.igem.org/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/3e56362b-0fdc-4554-b099-5bb022aafe3d All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://video.igem.org/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.