synthetic biology
Minireview | Synthetic BiologySynBio and the Boundaries between Functional and Pathogenic RepA-WH1 Bacterial AmyloidsAmyloids are protein polymers that were initially linked to human diseases. Across the whole Tree of Life, many disease-unrelated proteins are now emerging for which amyloids represent distinct functional states. Most bacterial amyloids described are extracellular, contributing to biofilm formation. However, only a few have been found in the bacterial cytosol. This paper reviews from the perspective of synthetic biology (SynBio) our...
Research Article | Synthetic BiologySynthetic Symbiosis under Environmental DisturbancesThe power of synthetic biology is immense. Will it, however, be able to withstand the environmental pressures once released in the wild. As new technologies aim to do precisely the same, we use a much simpler model to test mathematically the effect of a changing environment on a synthetic biological system. We assume that the system is successful if it maintains proportions close to what we observe in the laboratory. Extreme deviations...
Research Article | Synthetic BiologyEngineered Interspecies Amino Acid Cross-Feeding Increases Population Evenness in a Synthetic Bacterial ConsortiumMicrobial communities are ubiquitous in nature. Bacterial consortia live in and on our body and in our environment, and more recently, biotechnology is applying microbial consortia for bioproduction. As part of our body, bacterial consortia influence us in health and disease. Microbial consortium function is determined by its composition, which in turn is driven by the interactions between species. Further understanding of microbial...
Research Article | Synthetic BiologySynthetic Gene Circuits Enable Systems-Level Biosensor Trigger Discovery at the Host-Microbe InterfaceThe gut is a largely obscure and inaccessible environment. The use of live, engineered probiotics to detect and respond to disease signals in vivo represents a new frontier in the management of gut diseases. Engineered probiotics have also shown promise as a novel mechanism for drug delivery. However, the design and construction of effective strains that respond to the in vivo environment is hindered by our limited...
Special Issue Perspective | Synthetic BiologyReconciling Ecological and Engineering Design Principles for Building MicrobiomesSimplified microbial communities, or “benchtop microbiomes,” enable us to manage the profound complexity of microbial ecosystems. Widespread activities aiming to design and control communities result in novel resources for testing ecological theories and also for realizing new biotechnologies.
Special Issue Perspective | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyEngineering Complexity in Bacterial Regulatory Circuits for Biotechnological ApplicationsEngineering microbial systems allows the generation of new technologies having significant impact in the biotechnological industry and on human health. In the past few years, several synthetic biology approaches have been implemented in bacteria to allow precise engineering of novel regulatory circuits for several applications.
Special Issue Perspective | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Who, Why, and How of Small-Molecule Production in Invertebrate Microbiomes: Basic Insights Fueling Drug DiscoveryBacteria have supplied us with many bioactive molecules for use in medicine and agriculture. However, rates of discovery have decreased as the biosynthetic capacity of the culturable biosphere has been continuously mined for many decades.