
via McKelvey School of Engineering
Engineered actuator addresses fears of contamination by GM microbes, Moon’s lab finds
Tae Seok Moon, associate professor of energy, environmental & chemical engineering at the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, has taken a big step forward in his quest to design a modular, genetically engineered kill switch that integrates into any genetically engineered microbe, causing it to self-destruct under certain defined conditions.
His research was published Feb. 3 in the journal Nature Communications.
Moon’s lab understands microbes in a way that only engineers would, as systems made up of sensors, circuits and actuators. These are the components that allow microbes to sense the world around them, interpret it and then act on the interpretation.
In some cases, the actuator may act on the information by moving toward a certain protein or attacking a foreign invader. Moon is developing actuators that go against millions of years of evolution that have acted in favor of self-preservation, asking instead that an actuator tells a microbe to self-destruct.
The kill switch activator is an effort to quell anxiety about the potential for genetically modified microbes to make their way into the environment. So far, he has developed several: one, for instance, causes a microbe to self-destruct once the ambient environment around it reaches a certain temperature.
“But the previous work had either a base-level activation that was either too high or too low,” Moon said. And every time he solved that problem, “the bacteria would mutate.” During experiments, that meant there were too many microbes left alive after the kill switch should have turned on.
Additionally, in some situations, a kill switch may not be triggered for days. This additional time means additional opportunities for the microbes to mutate, possibly affecting the switch’s ability to work.
For instance, Moon is interested in developing genetically engineered microbes to eat plastic as a way of disposing of harmful waste. “But we don’t know how many days we need to keep these microbes stable until they finish cleaning up our environment. It might be a few days, or a few weeks,” Moon said, “because we have so much waste.”
To overcome these roadblocks, Moon inserted multiple kill switches — up to four — in the microbial DNA. The result: During experimentation, of a billion microbes, only one or none may survive.
During the experiments, researchers tested the microbes daily. The switches remained functional for 28 days.
“This is the best kill switch ever developed,” Moon said.
These experiments were also done in mice, but looking forward, Moon would like to build kill switches for microbes that will be used in soil — maybe to kill pathogens that are deadly to crops — or even in the human gut to cure diseases.
The end game is getting microbes to do what we want and then go away, Moon said. He thinks these microbes could be used to solve a whole host of global problems. “Bacteria may seem dumb,” he said, “but they can be very smart as long as we teach them well.”
Original Article: Moon develops targeted, reliable, long-lasting kill switch
More from: McKelvey School of Engineering
The Latest Updates from Bing News & Google News
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Genetically engineered kill switch
- Medigene AG Secures European Patent for its PD1-41BB Costimulatory Switch Protein
Effective T cell immune responses to antigens typically require both a primary antigenic stimulation via the T cell receptor (TCR) and costimulatory signals. The intracellular signaling domains of the ...
- Genetically Modified Food News, Research and Latest Updates
Keep abreast with the latest news related to Genetically Modified Food there are 128 news items on Genetically Modified Food that covers updates, breakthroughs and in-depth reports. We provide you ...
- Crispr Pioneer Jennifer Doudna Has the Guts to Take On the Microbiome
The world-famous biochemist is ready to tackle everything from immune disorders and mental illness to climate change—all by altering microbes in the digestive tract.
- Breakthrough in genetically engineered skin
Scientists have created a genetically engineered skin that could radically improve the treatment of burns victims and end the need for painful grafts. The breakthrough works by using a powerful ...
- Genetically Engineered Animal Models & Services Market with Business Analysis 2023-2031
Genetically Engineered Animal Models and Services Market Research Report with 90+ pages (Analysis and Scope): In this report analysis, we thoroughly examine the Genetically Engineered Animal ...
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Genetically engineered kill switch
[google_news title=”” keyword=”genetically engineered kill switch” num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Genetic engineering
- The Gamble: Can Genetically Modified Mosquitoes End Disease?
Working on a remote island, scientists think they can use genetic engineering to block a malaria-carrying species of mosquito from spreading the disease — and do it in just a few months. But ...
- Expert opinion: EU Commission's genetic engineering deregulation plans are illegal
Should the proposal be adopted, an action for annulment would have good chances of success, according to law firm ...
- Genetically engineering associations between plants and diazotrophs could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but the overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture is not sustainable.
- Genetically engineering associations between plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but the overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture is not sustainable. In a review article publishing in the journal Trends in ...
- Mice Model Genetic Engineering Market [2023-2030]| Get the Lowdown on Industry Trends| 115 Pages Report
The global Mice Model Genetic Engineering market was valued at USD million in 2020 and it is expected to reach USD million by the end of 2030, growing at a CAGR of Percent during 2021-2030.
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Genetic engineering
[google_news title=”” keyword=”genetic engineering” num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]