June 4, 2015
(Medical Xpress) – A Stanford-designed project has built a startling new tool for diagnostic medicine: living biosensors made of bacteria that glow a particular color when they detect trouble. The team rewired the genetic circuitry inside bacterial cells so that … Read More
May 29, 2015
(Los Angeles Times) – In two articles published Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine, researchers reported they had equipped E. coli bacteria with genetically encoded digital amplifying genetic switches. Those engineering tweaks transformed the bacteria into living sensors, capable … Read More
May 18, 2015
(Nature) – Currently, morphine is produced from the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). By providing a simpler — and more manipulable — means of producing opiates, the yeast research could ultimately lead to cheaper, less addictive, safer and more-effective analgesics. And … Read More
May 14, 2015
Human Reproduction Update (vol. 21, no. 3, 2015) is available online by subscription only. Articles include: “Artificial gametes: A systematic review of biological progress towards clinical application” by Saskia Hendriks, et al. “Potential consequences of clinical application of artificial gametes: … Read More
May 8, 2015
(Washington Post) – Using synthetic biology techniques, researchers have created everything from new flavors and fragrances to new types of biofuels and materials. While the innovation potential of combining biology and engineering is unquestionable, now comes the hard part of proving … Read More
April 14, 2015
(Union Times San Diego) – Advancing Craig Venter’s vision of digitizing life, a company founded by the genome pioneer has started early sales of a new DNA workstation that assembles high-quality DNA sequences almost from scratch. SGI-DNA, a subsidiary of … Read More
April 10, 2015
(MIT Technology Review) – Genetically engineered bacteria can prevent mice offered a high-fat diet from overeating. The beneficial effects of the bacteria last for about four to six weeks, suggesting that they temporarily take up residence in the gut. Researchers … Read More
March 31, 2015
(Wired) – Over the last several decades, DNA – the genetic material of life as we know it – has completed a remarkable scientific cycle. In 1953, it was a mysterious blur on an X-ray diffractogram. By the 1970s, it … Read More
March 11, 2015
(Eurekalert) – A new technique for creating artificial DNA that is faster, more accurate and more flexible than existing methods has been developed by scientists at Imperial College London. The new system – called BASIC – is a major advance … Read More
March 3, 2015
(Physorg) – Deep in the heart of synthetic biology are the proteins that make it tick. Protein engineering is the crucial pulse of the booming, relatively new scientific discipline. Scientists grow, harvest, and reprogram proteins to become new drug therapeutics, … Read More
March 2, 2015
(Drug Discovery & Development) – In a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers have devised a single-step fermentative method for the industrial production of the active drug pravastatin that previously involved a costly dual-step … Read More
February 27, 2015
(The Economist) – Phage therapy, as this practice is known, fell out of favour in the West after the development of antibiotics, although it continued in parts of the old Soviet sphere of influence. (These days, research is still carried … Read More
February 25, 2015
(Discover Magazine) – On its surface, it looks like just another science puzzle game. In reality, the game is part of a broader goal to enable non-scientists to contribute to synthetic biology research. ‘It’ is Nanocrafter, a project created by … Read More
February 18, 2015
(Science) – For 30 years, researchers have struggled to determine which immune responses best foil HIV, information that has guided the design of AIDS vaccines and other prevention approaches. Now, a research team has shown that a lab-made molecule that … Read More
February 16, 2015
(The Conversation) – Synthetic biology, a more recent concept, focuses on the design of artificial devices or systems with biological or “bio-like” functions. This covers a wide range of applications – but perhaps the most fascinating biological “device” we could … Read More
February 11, 2015
(The Wall Street Journal) – J. Craig Venter is in the life business. The co-founder and chief executive of Human Longevity Inc. has had his hand in any number of projects related to the nuts and bolts of existence—from sequencing … Read More
February 3, 2015
(Physorg) – All life processes depend on genes turning on and off. Cornell University scientists have created a new “on” switch to control gene expression – a breakthrough that could revolutionize genetic engineering. Synthetic biologists led by Julius Lucks, assistant … Read More
February 2, 2015
(The Guardian) – Champions of synthetic biology expect the field to radically restructure many existing industries and create significant new ones. The potential applications of synthetic biology span many sectors: from engineered plants in agriculture and synthetic biofuels in energy … Read More
January 22, 2015
(BBC) – US scientists say they have taken the first step towards making “safer” GMOs that cannot spread in the wild, using synthetic biology. They have re-written the genetic code of bacteria to use only synthetic chemicals to grow. The … Read More
January 9, 2015
(Io9) – For the first time ever, researchers in New Zealand have shown that mitochondrial DNA can move between cells in an animal tumor. It’s an extraordinary finding that could lead to an entirely new field of synthetic biology and … Read More
January 5, 2015
(Business Insider) – In the early 21st century it has become harder for drugmakers to find new cures quickly enough to replace those on which the patents are expiring. Many drugmakers, both established ones and startups, have sought salvation in … Read More
December 29, 2014
(Harvard Gazette) – team of researchers led by Harvard geneticist George Church at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and Harvard Medical School (HMS) has made big strides toward a future in which the predominant chemical factories of the … Read More
December 22, 2014
(Nanotechnology Now) – Human cells are protected by a largely impenetrable molecular membrane, but researchers have built the first artificial transporter protein that carries individual atoms across membranes, opening the possibility of engineering a new class of smart molecules with … Read More
December 15, 2014
(MIT Technology Review) – In a step toward sophisticated artificial cells, scientists have engineered a silicon chip that can produce proteins from DNA, the most basic function of life. The system, though relatively simple, suggests a path to mimicking life … Read More
December 2, 2014
(Bioscience Technology) – A team of researchers have created the world’s first enzymes made from artificial genetic material. A team of researchers have created the world’s first enzymes made from artificial genetic material. The research is published in the journal … Read More
