Synthetic biology
Bacterial cells engineered to produce fluorescence
Scientists have produced a very unusual light show, engineering bacterial cells to fluoresce in synchrony. The researchers turned the cells into synchronised "genetic clocks" - programming them to switch a fluorescent protein on and off. These waves of activity could eventually be used to make biological sensors, or to programme cells to release timed doses of medicine. The researchers report the advance in the journal Nature. Synchronised waves, or oscillations, are important to scientists because they control crucial functions in the human body, such as the sleep-wake cycle, learning processes and the regular release of substances including insulin. This same team of researchers, which was led by Dr Jeff Hasty from the University of California San Diego, US, first produced "flashing" cells a year ago. These bacterial clocks could be tuned to alter the rate at which they blinked on and off. But this latest advance allows the cells "talk to each other" and synchronise their activity as they grow into a colony. Source: BBC
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