The Synthetic Biology mashup is a weekly review of articles and pieces of news related to synthetic biology. While we share most of this on our twitter feed, if you need to catch up on this week’s headlines just read on!
Glow-in-the-Dark Plants to be Commercially Produced by Bioglow
American biotechnology company Bioglow used synthetic biology processes to develop ornamental glowing plants named Starlight Avatar. These plants express genes from luminescent bacteria and do not require any external stimuli to glow. An online auction is due to take place in late January to buy the first ones. This announcement comes after last yzar successful “Glowing Plant” kickstarter campaign which raised $485000.
A look at AquaBounty’s genetically engineered AquAdvantage Salmon
This week the MotleyFool published an interesting article on AquaBounty Technologies, now owned by Intrexon, highlighting their latest products and the possible safety concerns. Aquabounty has developed a genetically engineered Atlantic salmon, the AquAdvantage Salmon, maturing twice as fast as conventional ones thanks to the introduction of a single gene from a Pacific Chinook salmon. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared them to be safe to for human consumption back in 2010. AquAdvantage Salmons should be ready for commercialisation next year, potentially opening the regulatory doors for engineering other types of fish.
Robust Synthetic Genetic Clock Built to Withstand Changes in Temperature
Scientists at Rice University and the University of Houston published an article shedding a new light on the complex genetic regulations behind living organisms’ adjustment to changing temperatures. Matthew Bennett and his team developed a robust synthetic genetic clock to allow Escherichia coli bacteria to accurately keep time in a wide temperature range. Temperature normally affects biochemistry, the warmer the condition, the faster enzymes work. However a lot of living organisms manage to keep their circadian rhythm constant, through a combination of smart architecture and temperature-sensitive proteins. Matthew Bennett and his team managed to reproduce similar behaviours while developing an interesting new tool for synthetic biology.
New Synthetic Biology graduate programs opening around the UK
These new EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training in Synthetic Biology are jointly supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and will open at the Universities of Oxford, Bristol and Warwick. Applications are already open.
That’s it for this week’s Synthetic Biology Mashup! A suggestion or a question? Shoot us an email.
