Hello everyone and welcome back to the Cognixia podcast. Every week, we dig up a new topic from emerging digital technologies and share insights, ideas, information, stories, and more. We strive to inspire our listeners to learn new things and update their repertoire of skills to stay relevant and continue growing in their careers.
In today’s episode, we talk about synthetic biology. Synthetic biology (SynBio) is a rapidly developing field that combines biology, engineering, and computer science to design and create new biological systems or modify existing ones. It blends the disciplines of biology (how with engineering principles as well as computational tools to manipulate and reprogram living organisms. Synthetic biology aims to create novel biological entities with specific functions or to improve existing ones. These functions can range from producing new medicines and materials to engineering microbes for environmental cleanup.
So, imagine you have a toolkit of building blocks like genes, proteins, etc. and you also have the skills and knowledge to assemble them into new and useful systems, quite akin to a programmer writing code to build a new software application, then what you would be doing would be under the domain of synthetic biology.
Synthetic biology or SynBio for short, holds immense potential to transform many fields. It can help the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors in developing new drugs, vaccines, and personalized therapies. It can help the biomaterials space by creating sustainable materials with desired properties. It can help the agriculture sector by helping create unique engineered crops with improved yields or disease resistance. It can also help fuel innovations in the biofuel space by developing cleaner and more efficient energy sources.
SynBio enables rapid transformation by offering a revolutionary approach to manipulating living organisms. This powerful combination of biology, engineering, and computer science is fueling innovation across a vast spectrum. Imagine engineering yeast to produce sustainable fabrics or crafting microbes to clean up polluted environments., now how cool is that! These are just a few examples of how SynBio is blurring the lines between science fiction and reality.
One major area of disruption is medicine. Synthetic biology plays a pivotal role in the development of new drugs and therapies. By editing genes with incredible precision, researchers can create organisms that produce life-saving medications like insulin or fight off diseases by engineering CAR-T cells to target cancer. Beyond treatment, SynBio is also paving the way for personalized medicine, allowing scientists to tailor therapies to individual patients’ genetic profiles.
Technology is the backbone of this revolution. Advanced computational tools are used to design and simulate synthetic biological systems before they are built in the lab. This “in silico” approach allows researchers to test and refine their creations virtually, saving time and resources. Additionally, gene-editing tools like CRISPR-Cas9 provide unparalleled precision in manipulating DNA, enabling the creation of highly specific biological functions. The synergy between these technological advancements and the field of SynBio is propelling scientific discovery at an unprecedented pace, with the potential to solve some of humanity’s most pressing challenges.
While we talk about synthetic biology, let us tell you about the fantastic developments in sustainable fabrics, enabled by synthetic biology. Gone are the days of relying solely on cotton or petroleum-based materials for clothing. Bolt Threads, a pioneering company in the SynBio space, has developed a revolutionary fabric called Mylo. Using engineered yeast fermentation, Mylo replicates the structure and properties of natural leather, but with a significantly smaller environmental footprint. This groundbreaking material offers a sustainable and ethical alternative to traditional leather, appealing to environmentally conscious consumers in the fashion industry. The innovation lies in genetically modifying yeast to produce a protein like collagen, the main building block of animal skin.
Isn’t that amazing?
Now, would you believe us if we said that synthetic biology is also contributing to the development of renewable fragrances?
The fragrance industry relies heavily on essential oils derived from plants, a process that can be unsustainable and strain natural resources. Amyris, a leader in industrial biotechnology, uses SynBio to create renewable alternatives to these traditional fragrances. Through fermentation, they engineer microbes to produce complex molecules identical to natural ingredients like vanilla or sandalwood. This not only ensures a consistent and sustainable supply chain but also eliminates the environmental impact of large-scale plant cultivation. Amyris’ approach involves identifying the genes responsible for fragrance production in plants and then introducing them into microbes for large-scale, cost-effective production.
Let us also look at the developments enabled by synthetic biology in the building of programmable cells. For this, we turn the spotlight to a company called Gingko Bioworks. Ginkgo Bioworks is a company at the forefront of developing foundational tools for SynBio. They have created a vast library of well-characterized biological components and genetic code. This “codebase” allows researchers and companies to essentially “program” cells to perform specific functions. Imagine engineering bacteria to clean up oil spills or produce biofuels. Ginkgo Bioworks’ innovation lies in creating a standardized platform that simplifies and accelerates synthetic biology workflows. Their codebase acts like a biological toolbox, empowering researchers to build upon existing knowledge and rapidly prototype new applications.
If you are someone who hasn’t exactly been excited by biology in school, you might feel what these developments even have to do with my career, I am just a data scientist or a software developer, or maybe a DevOps specialist. But, what is the binding thread across all these innovations? Technology! For such revolutionary innovations to take place, there is always tons of data that have to be analyzed, it requires sophisticated software and applications, it requires smooth algorithms, it requires experts who can sift through data and derive insights, identify the right gene to be engineered, look at probabilities, run simulations, and so much more! So your tech skills are still immensely useful and much-needed in the field of synthetic biology.
Now, that is interesting, isn’t it? When you get a chance, do look into the outstanding innovations in the field of synthetic biology, we are sure it will get you excited about the prospect of working in the field.
So, keep your skills sharp and your minds open, we’d say.
We will be back again next week with another interesting and exciting new episode of the Cognixia podcast.
Until then, happy learning!
