Synthetic Biology

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Some of the long-standing holy grails in designing and customizing biological systems may now be coming into reach due to generative AI and high-throughput testing. We are beginning to design not only static protein structures but also functional enzymes, and even customize entire phages (viruses that infect bacteria) based on desired functions or host ranges.

R&D Gaps (5)

Protein engineering has largely focused on designing static structures that closely mimic natural proteins. This narrow approach limits the creation of truly novel or highly functional enzymes.

Scientists are constrained to a small number of microbial hosts for bioproduction, limiting the diversity and efficiency of engineered biological systems. Expanding the repertoire of microbial hosts could unlock novel biochemical pathways, enabling the production of a wider array of biomolecules and...

Current genetic tools primarily enable modification of simple organisms. Programming more complex organisms and orchestrating entire developmental pathways remains a major challenge.

Applied synthetic biology is underutilized in applications such as building sustainable food systems and repairing the environmental damage caused by conventional agriculture and industry. Despite advances in tools and chassis engineering, there are few robust platforms that translate synthetic biol...

Current bioreactor designs are inefficient when scaling up production processes, limiting the ability to produce bioproducts at industrial scales.

Synthetic Biology

R&D Gaps (5)

Protein Design Has Been Limited to Static, Bio-mimetic Structures

Limited Microbial Hosts/Chassis Organisms

Inability to Program Complex Organisms and Developmental Pathways

Lack of Applied Synthetic Biology Platforms

Poor Scalability of Bioreactors Limits Biomanufacturing