Faculty Profile

Maciek R. Antoniewicz

Centennial Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

Education

  • Doctorate – 2006 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge MA
  • Masters – 2000 Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
  • Bachelors – 1998 Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands 

About Maciek R. Antoniewicz

The Antoniewicz lab for Metabolic Engineering and Systems Biology is focused on developing next generation tools for engineering microbial and mammalian cells applied to specific problems in biotechnology and medicine. Our current areas of focus include: 1) production of biofuels using microbes such as E. coli, yeast, and thermophiles; 2) the study and manipulation of mammalian cell phenotypes in diabetes.

Our research includes all modern technologies and techniques for molecular biology, metabolic flux analysis, cell biology, mass spectrometry, genomics, computer simulation and bioinformatics. The primary goal of our research is to provide a fundamental understanding of the function and regulation of complex biological processes that emerge through the interaction of genes, proteins, and metabolites at multiple metabolic and genetic regulatory levels. To achieve this, we develop novel experimental and computational tools to quantify cellular physiology and apply genome-wide models of cellular interactions to interpret the large sets of biological data generated from these technologies.

Our interests range from looking at model microbial systems, i.e. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Escherichia coli and thermophiles, to investigations of mammalian cells such as hepatocytes, adipocytes and myocytes. Beyond large-scale identification of interactions and transcriptional control of network operations in isolated cells, we develop technologies for studying disease phenotypes at the whole organism level. Our results find applications in many areas including industrial biotechnology, e.g. metabolic engineering of microbial cells for the production of biofuels and biochemicals, and medicine, in particular, in the area of human (metabolic) disorders such as type-2 diabetes and cancer.

Select Publications 

For a complete listing of publications, please view the Full CV.

  1. Long CP, Gonzalez JE, Feist AM, Palsson BO, Antoniewicz MR., “Dissecting the genetic and metabolic mechanisms of adaptation to the knockout of a major metabolic enzyme in Escherichia coli”, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 115(1), 222-227, (2018)
  2. Gonzalez JE, Bennett RK, Papoutsakis ET, Antoniewicz MR., “Methanol assimilation in Escherichia coli is improved by co-utilization of threonine and deletion of leucine-responsive regulatory protein”, Metab Eng 45, 67-74, (2018)
  3. Long CP, Gonzalez JE, Cipolla RM, Antoniewicz MR, “Metabolism of the fast-growing bacterium Vibrio natriegens elucidated by 13C metabolic flux analysis”, Metab Eng 44, 191-197, (2017)
  4. Cordova LT, Cipolla RM, Swarup A, Long CP, Antoniewicz MR, “13C metabolic flux analysis of three divergent extremely thermophilic bacteria: Geobacillus sp. LC300, Thermus thermophilus HB8, and Rhodothermus marinus DSM 4252”, Metab Eng 44, 182-190, (2017)
  5. Long CP, Gonzalez JE, Feist AM, Palsson BO, Antoniewicz MR, “Fast growth phenotype of E. coli K-12 from adaptive laboratory evolution does not require intracellular flux rewiring”, Metab Eng 44, 100-107, (2017)
  6. Long CP, Au J, Sandoval NR, Gebreselassie NA, Antoniewicz MR, “Enzyme I facilitates reverse flux from pyruvate to phosphoenolpyruvate in Escherichia coli”, Nat Commun 8, 14316, (2017)
  7. Gonzalez JE, Long CP, Antoniewicz MR, “Comprehensive analysis of glucose and xylose metabolism in Escherichia coli under aerobic and anaerobic conditions by 13C metabolic flux analysis”, Metab Eng 39, 9-18, (2017)
  8. Whitaker WB, Jones JA, Bennett K, Gonzalez JE, Vernacchio VR, Collins SM, Palmer MA, Schmidt S, Antoniewicz MR, Koffas MA, Papoutsakis ET, “Engineering the Biological Conversion of Methanol to Specialty Chemicals in Escherichia coli”, Metab Eng 39, 49-59, (2017)
  9. Jones SW, Fast AG, Carlson ED, Wiedel CA, Au J, Antoniewicz MR, Papoutsaks ET, Tracy BP, “CO2 fixation by anaerobic non-photosynthetic mixotrophy for improved carbon conversion”, Nat Commun7, 12800, (2016)
  10. Gebreselassie NA, Antoniewicz MR, “13C-Metabolic flux analysis of co-cultures: A novel approach”, Metab Eng 31, 132-139, (2015)

Awards 

For a complete listing of awards, please view the Full CV.

  1. Biotechnology and Bioengineering (B&B) Daniel I.C. Wang Award: 2015
  2. UD Gerard J. Mangone Best Young Scholar Award (Alison Young Professor): 2012
  3. Outstanding Junior Faculty Member, College of Engineering, University of Delaware: 2012
  4. National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award: 2011 – 2016
  5. University of Delaware Research Foundation Strategic Initiatives Research Award: 2009 – 2011
  6. Emerging Leaders AllianceTraining Program (Invited Participant): 2008
  7. University of Delaware Research Foundation Research Award: 2008
  8. Jay Bailey Young Investigator Award for Best Paper in Metabolic Engineering: 2008
  9. DuPont Young Professor Award: 2008 – 2011
  10. DuPont-MIT Fellowship: 2001 – 2006

Research Areas 

Metabolic engineering, systems biology, metabolic flux analysis, biofuels, diabetes 

Office: 211 CLB
Phone: 302-831-8960
mranton@udel.edu

PeopleAffiliated FacultyMaciek R. Antoniewicz