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Synthetic Biology & Biotech
Synthetic Biology,
00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 Watch Closely Informs Strategy Act Now
Biotech and Agriculture
3RD YEAR ON THE LIST
Synthetic Biology
KEY INSIGHT EXAMPLES DISRUPTIVE IMPACT EMERGING PLAYERS
Researchers are developing standardized Imagine a future where you no longer • Twist Bioscience
Synthetic biology is a biological parts, redesigning proteins, take medication—instead, your cells are
• SynBioBeta
relatively new interdis- developing new microbes, and produc- simply reprogrammed to fight off what-
ing enzymes and other products—even ever ails you. Or you bite into a thick, • JCVI
ciplinary field of sci- juicy tomahawk steak that’s grilled to
designing and building unique genomes. • Synthego
ence that combines en- In January 2008, the J. Craig Venter perfection—and vegan-friendly, because
it’s made from plant-based proteins. Syn- • Sherlock Biosciences
gineering, design, and Institute (JCVI) created the first synthetic
thetic biology will someday help repair • George Church’s lab at
bacterial genome, Mycoplasma genitali-
computer science with um JCVI-1.0, representing the largest defective genes, rid the planet of toxins, Harvard University
biology. Researchers destroy cancer cells, and help mass-pro-
synthetic DNA structure ever created. • Keasling Lab at the Lawrence Berkeley
duce proteins for our consumption. In
design or redesign or- Two years later, they announced the National Laboratory
the last decade, investors put $26 billion
world’s first synthetic life form, a sin-
ganisms on a molecular gle-celled organism made from laborato-
into synbio startups, according to SynBio-
Beta, the synthetic biology industry hub.
level for new purposes, ry chemicals. Swiss researchers showed
Products now underway could generate
it’s possible to program mammalian cells
making them adaptable to do basic math. Researchers at the
$4 trillion by 2031.
to different environ- University of California, San Francisco,
ments or giving them engineered E. coli to be programmed to
find and move along designated paths.
different abilities.
Syn 3.0 has only 473 genes.
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7TH YEAR ON THE LIST
CRISPR
KEY INSIGHT EXAMPLES DISRUPTIVE IMPACT EMERGING PLAYERS
Last year, Jennifer Doudna, a biochemist Scientists hope CRISPR will help boost • Mammoth Biosciences
CRISPR, which stands at the University of California, Berkeley, our immune systems, whether it’s fight-
• Verve Therapeutics
for clustered regular- and Emmanuelle Charpentier, director ing off tumor cells with fewer side effects
of the Max Planck Unit for the Science than chemotherapy or entirely disabling • Plantedit
ly interspaced short cancer cells themselves. Expect wide-
of Pathogens, won the 2020 Nobel Prize • Caribou Biosciences
palindromic repeats, in chemistry for the codevelopment of spread clinical use of the technology this
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals
decade.
allows scientists to edit CRISPR-Cas9. Human trials will test
CRISPR’s potential to treat numerous
precise positions on genetic diseases, including congenital
DNA using a bacterial blindness, muscular dystrophy, Alzhei-
enzyme. The technology mer’s disease, and sickle cell anemia.
is transforming cancer
Jennifer Doudna (right) and Emmanuelle Char-
pentier won the 2020 Nobel Prize in chemistry
treatment, preventing
for codeveloping the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing the spread of disease,
technique.
and addressing global
famine.
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Synthetic Biology,
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1ST YEAR ON THE LIST
mRNA Vaccines
KEY INSIGHT EXAMPLES DISRUPTIVE IMPACT EMERGING PLAYERS
Last year marked the first time a mar- Researchers can design and test mRNA • BioNTech
As genetic material that keted drug used mRNA vaccines. Unlike vaccines more quickly than traditional
• Moderna
traditional vaccines, which use weakened ones. This new biotechnology can be
contains instructions for manufactured synthetically, rather than • Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
bits of a live virus or bits of dead virus,
making proteins, mes- the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna through cultured cell lines or other living • U.S. National Institutes of Health
senger RNA is revolu- COVID-19 vaccines instead used mRNA cells such as chicken eggs (a common
human allergen). Synthetic biology sys- • Intellia Therapeutics
to overwrite the code in our cells. This
tionizing vaccine devel- breakthrough technology falls under the tems can automate the design-test-build
opment. umbrella of synthetic biology. Research- sequence for rapid learning, targeting
variants and making adjustments as
ers believe that sending new instruc-
needed.
tions into our cells could help protect us
against a number of viruses in the very
near future. An mRNA vaccine to fully
immunize people against malaria is in the
works.
Vaccines with messenger RNA are quick to design
and test.
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Biotech and Agriculture
Perpetual Puppies
Mid-future pessimistic scenario
Advances in synthetic age reversal find an off-brand use:
our pets. Not only do we rush to keep the pets we love
alive for longer, but some are never even allowed to
age. Socialites biohack puppies and kittens to keep them
purse-sized, preventing them from physically matur-
ing. Even though these pets look adorable, their biology
resists the changes we make, leading to complications and
in some cases shortening their lifespans instead of extend-
ing them. The constant tension between keeping them
young and keeping them alive is a biological balancing act
that torments the animals and leaves them in a near-cata-
tonic state. Animal rights activists push back, but with no
regulation and few enforceable nonhuman rights, perpet-
ually young pets perpetually suffer.
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Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism be removed from a living person. As an Assembloids
(SNP) Profiling alternative, scientists are creating or- Miniature snippets of the nervous system
Researchers are developing a new tech- ganoids—tiny blobs grown from human are being used to create miniature blobs
nique that might someday enable people stem cells that could grow into tissues. of brain tissue. When put together, lab-
to upgrade their children before birth. In 2008, researchers created the first grown muscles and brains can establish
Think of an SNP as a single genetic letter cerebral organoids that provided some neural highways and process informa-
(A, T, C, G). Tinkering with the order more understanding of brain functions. tion. Researchers at Stanford University
of those letters could optimize human Cerebral organoids have since been used are experimenting with self-assembling
genetic code for the best possible out- in research on autism and other diseases, tissue that responds to stimuli. In one in-
comes. This doesn’t mean creating babies such as the Zika virus. Researchers at stance, the tissue twitched on command.
with a certain hair or eye color but rather Stanford University and the Chan Zuck-
lowering the odds of future heart disease erberg Biohub created human forebrain
organoids. The forebrain is the part Organoids for COVID-19
or perhaps acquiring diabetes. The pro- Research
cedure requires in vitro fertilization for of the brain responsible for thinking,
now: Embryos can be SNP-profiled, and perceiving, and evaluating our surround- Lab-grown lung and brain tissues are
the best possible combination would be ings. Research is underway elsewhere being used to research the lasting effects
used for the pregnancy. Future genera- that would transplant bits of human of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes
tions would pass those traits forward. brain organoids into rats, raising ethical COVID-19. Miniature guts and livers
concerns. Organoids aren’t conscious are also being grown in high-security
(yet), and as experimentation progresses, labs and infected with the virus, as are
Organoids scientists must develop ethical standards. combinations of different organs (called a
It’s difficult and dangerous for scien- The Brainstorm Project at the National “body on a chip”).
tists to study how living human tissue Institutes of Health will bring together
responds to viruses, medications, or scientists and ethicists to develop a set of
A tiny bioengineered human liver organoid grows in the lab with pluripotent stem cells.
other stimuli: Brain or heart tissue can’t recommendations.
Image credit: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
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Super-Fast Molecule Discovery Ciotat,” a black-and-white French short Computational Biology difficult for their offspring to reproduce.
Scientists now use synthetic biology to from 1896. Last year, Chinese scientists Advancements Male mosquitoes don’t bite, and the U.S.
discover and produce molecules on de- at Tianjin University stored 445KB of Proteins are essential to life. These large, Environmental Protection Agency says
mand. The Defense Advanced Research data in an E. coli cell. The Intelligence complex molecules contain chains of they pose no human threat. Local author-
Project Agency and the MIT-Broad Insti- Advanced Research Projects Activity, a amino acids and come in unique shapes. ities, who have been dealing with steadily
tute Foundry tested whether new mole- group within the Office of the Director A protein’s structure determines its job, growing cases of dengue fever and West
cules could be generated for practical use. of National Intelligence, intends to store whether it’s transporting oxygen or Nile virus, hope that a smaller mosquito
By combining artificial intelligence and an exabyte of data—roughly a million protecting the body from pathogens. Re- population will curb the diseases without
synthetic biology, the team delivered six terabyte-sized hard drives—in a blob searchers at DeepMind developed an AI insecticides or poisonous chemicals.
out of the 10 requested designer mole- of DNA. A weird branch of biological system to understand protein structures.
cules in just 90 days. science, yes, but human computing has Called AlphaFold, it accurately predicts Genetically Modified
practical purposes: DNA could solve our the shape of a protein from its amino Cephalopods
future data storage problems. It’s durable, acid sequence. This discovery will ac-
Researchers assembled a working model of a DNA Storage too: Evolutionary scientists routinely Last year, scientists created the first
human brain-to-muscle nerve circuit in a dish. celerate research, giving scientists more genetically modified squid using CRISPR.
In 2018, scientists from Microsoft study DNA that is thousands of years old precise information about how proteins
Image credit: Jimena Andersen/Pasca Lab.
Research and the University of Wash- to learn more about our human ances- Research on cephalopods is particularly
function inside cells. important because squids are highly in-
ington achieved a new milestone: They tors. Twist Bioscience, a DNA storage
discovered how to create random access startup, discovered how to make hyper- telligent, have complex nervous systems,
memory on DNA at scale. They encoded dense, stable, affordable DNA storage. By Engineered Mosquitoes and communicate using sophisticated
200 megabytes of data on human DNA— depositing microscopic drops of nucle- This year, millions of genetically engi- signals that scientists don’t understand.
including 35 video, image, audio, and otides onto silicon chips, Twist’s robots neered mosquitoes will be released in the Researchers could use gene editing to
text files ranging from 29KB to 44MB. can create a million short strands of DNA Florida Keys. The Florida Keys Mosquito study and learn more about cephalopod
To date, scientists have stored a $50 Am- at a time. The end result will be a tiny, Control District Board of Commission- brains. At the Massachusetts-based Ma-
azon gift card, an operating system, and pill-sized container that could someday ers approved a pilot project to intro- rine Biological Laboratory, researchers
a film, “L’arrivée d’un train en gare de La hold hundreds of terabytes of capacity. duce male mosquitoes that have been successfully mapped a squid genome and
engineered to pass on a gene making it edited embryos to create a transparent
creature. (Typically, this variety of squid
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has dark spots.) Because cephalopods are cells to perform useful tasks will still take 2018, scientists at the California Institute DIY Biohacking Projects new ways to engineer food and fabric. A
so intelligent, research is highly regulated time—we’re not talking about engineer- of Technology built a DNA-based ver- Biohacking is a socio-technological team of biohackers created vegan cheese
in the European Union and in Canada, ing synthetic humans, yet—but there are sion of tic-tac-toe with self-assembling movement bringing together citizen from engineered yeast. They used the
but there are fewer protections in the many thought-provoking possibilities. DNA origami tiles. In the future, molec- scientists, academic researchers, tech- yeast to develop milk proteins, which
U.S. As scientists begin editing the genet- The future of synthetic biology might, by ular robotics will offer new opportunities nologists, data scientists, and others they combine with water and vegan oil to
ic code of squid and other sea life, they design, include a self-destruct switch to to advance medicine and agriculture. interested in life sciences. Biohackers make vegan milk, and then continued on
must consider the ethical implications. be used after a completed task—or after are developing DIY solutions for dis- with a more traditional cheese-making
we’ve changed our minds. Cloning and Synthesizing Viruses eases and illnesses, and they’re driven process. The recipe is open source and
Designer Cells by disenchantment with consolidation free. AlgiKnit uses kelp to make apparel
Early in the global pandemic, a team at and footwear and has developed yarn for
Researchers have already developed Molecular Robotics the University of Bern published the in the pharmaceutical industry, long
regulatory processes, and slow product a number of different textiles. Modified
artificial cells that come very close to the Molecular robotics will someday be code for a synthetic SARS-CoV-2 virus. yeasts, proteins, and other bits of DNA
real thing. But last year, University of used on all life forms to provide targeted Anyone could go online and order the development. Some create novel en-
hancements. Openness and collabora- could be hard to control, however. Novel
California, San Diego, scientists dis- therapies as well as genetic augmen- required ingredients—which included the organisms ingested or released into the
covered a technique to create cells that tation. Scientists at the Wyss Institute virus’s genomic instructions and yeast. tion are valued. Biohackers share their
protocols, research, and materials online, world could violate the United Nations
could send protein signals to other cells for Biologically Inspired Engineering at The journal Nature published the paper, Biological Weapons Convention, even
and trigger behavior—mimicking what Harvard University discovered that both which terrified national security experts much as technologists share their code
on GitHub. A group of Bay Area bio- if the biohack isn’t itself intended to be
biological cells do on their own. Artificial robots and our DNA can be programmed concerned that $30,000 and access to a a weapon. Some worry that the open-
cells will soon have practical applications to perform tasks. Molecules can also certified lab would allow anyone to build hackers launched Open Insulin, a project
based on the idea that insulin should be source ethos of biohacking could lead to
in precision medicine, or the custom- self-assemble and react to their environ- their own experiments. The Bern team a new class of biological weapons.
ization of health care. But as synthetic ments. A team of scientists at Arizona had a different perspective: By democ- free. Diabetes affects 422 million people
biology evolves, the implications of State University and Harvard University ratizing access to the novel coronavirus, worldwide, and the project aims to devel-
future designer cells are unpredictable. created single-stranded DNA that can more labs could create diagnostic tests, op the “first freely available, open or- DIY Vaccines
New generations of cells that randomly self-fold into origami-like shapes. It turns treatments, and vaccines. ganisms for insulin production that will Last summer, the U.S. prepared for a
mutate could function in ways we’ve not out that RNA can be used, too—and both be practical for small-scale, locally based new school year with no Covid vaccine
yet imagined. Programming individual can be produced inside living cells. In groups to use.” Biohacking also seeks in sight, and a group of citizen scientists
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began work on their own inoculation us- testing drugs, the FDA doesn’t techni- the genetic sequences of parents, along
ing a DIY approach. The Rapid Deploy- cally have oversight over Radvac’s DIY with cells retrieved during a biopsy, to
ment Vaccine Collaborative (Radvac) in- vaccine kits. generate an embryo’s entire genome.
cludes technologists, scientists, and other Next, they use algorithms to calculate
researchers who believe in an open-sci- Cheaper Genome Sequencing the probabilities of certain ailments.
ence approach. The group, working in Couples can then select the embryos they
borrowed labs using ingredients readily The first human genome cost roughly like, based on those results. While both
found online, created a formula meant $2.7 billion and took 13 years to com- companies are disease focused for now,
to be mixed at home and self-adminis- plete. Today, you can sequence your it is also possible to calculate scores and
tered. They subsequently delivered the genome from the comfort of your own optimize for other genetic traits such as
materials to 70 people. Radvac members, home for less than the price of a cheap height and intelligence. Genomic Pre-
most of whom work anonymously for TV. Nebula Genomics, a spinout from a diction provides genetic report cards
fear of repercussions from their univer- Harvard University lab run by synthetic to would-be parents: They can review
sities, research labs, or funders, pub- biologist George Church, offers a $299 risk assessment grades for heart attacks,
lished a white paper detailing both the test that returns a complete genetic code. certain cancers, and diabetes. They can
group’s research and their instructions Ancestry.com and 23andMe offer geno- also identify those embryos that could
for mixing coronavirus peptides—tiny typing tests, which look only at a part of have extremely low intelligence as adults
Researchers hope that engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes will reduce the total population in Florida.
fragments of genetic information that the genome, for $99 to $199. or become among the shortest 2% of the
cannot cause Covid independently. What population.
about regulators? There is no regulatory Gattaca Baby Tests
framework governing the distribution of New genetic screening techniques that Artificial Human Genomes
research, instructions, and supplies for test embryos before implantation are
DIY biohacking projects. While the U.S. Researchers at the University of Tartu,
making their way into fertility centers. Estonia, use neural networks to develop
Food and Drug Administration requires California-based MyOme and New Jer-
a stringent set of criteria for creating and novel segments on human genomes. Be-
sey-based Genomic Prediction now use cause genetic data is sensitive, the hope
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is that an artificial human genome will and implanted synthetic ovaries in mice Prime Editing In the future, if we can quantify aging Building Full Chromosomes
allow researchers to study DNA without that resulted in a successful pregnancy. A new gene-editing technique, which at a cellular level, we might be able to The Human Genome Project-read
infringing on anyone’s privacy. Researchers at the Children’s Hospital of scientists call “prime editing,” could make reverse it. Meanwhile, George Church (HGP-read)—an initiative to sequence
Philadelphia created an artificial womb the process much more precise and result and a team at Harvard’s Wyss Institute the human genome and improve the
Genetic Research’s Bias Problem called a “biobag” and used it to success- in more accurate modifications. As im- combined into a single compound three technology and costs associated with
fully keep premature lambs alive and pressive as CRISPR is, it can sometimes different gene therapies related to cellular sequencing DNA—wrapped up in 2004.
Less than 2% of people who have had developing normally for 28 days. We are decay. The intent: reverse obesity and
their genomes sequenced are from change the wrong genes or accidentally But now there’s a new initiative: the Hu-
still years away from synthesizing and break apart strands of a DNA’s double diabetes while also improving kidney and man Genome Project-write (HGP-write).
Africa. Overwhelmingly, the majority growing a full-size organic womb—but heart function. Remarkably, the tech-
of sequences come from affluent, Cau- helix. The refinement to CRISPR affords This is a synthetic biology initiative, and
the biobag represents an intervention that more precision and versatility. nique seemed to work—in mice. it’s a grand-scale collaboration to synthe-
casian Americans and Europeans. This could help the thousands of premature
excludes an enormous number of people size new species of microbes, plants, and
babies born before 25 weeks each year. Superbugs animals.
from the benefits of genetic research. Synthetic Age Reversal
A decade-long Three Million African The source code for humanity is stored Months before the pandemic, researchers
Genomes project is underway to locate Gene Vandalism at Johns Hopkins University ran a simula- A Shortage of Genome Storage
in our DNA. As we age, the sequence
missing genetic variants from ancestral Sometimes the gene editing process might stay constant, but there are tion of a hypothetical, treatment-resistant One of the fastest-growing datasets in
genomes in Africa. It would build an results in breaking the double strands chemical changes that occur to our DNA. coronavirus outbreak spawned at a Bra- the world comprises human genetic data.
African biobank of clinical information of a DNA’s helix. That results in what Observing those changes could lead to zillian pig farm. In the simulation, 65 mil- By 2025, we may be out of data storage
and could lead to a more equitable future synthetic biologist George Church calls new techniques to halt or even reverse lion people died in just 18 months. When space for human genomes, according to
of genetic research. “gene vandalism.” As cells try to repair the age-related disease. Columbia University SARS-CoV-2 became a global pandemic estimates by the University of Illinois
break, it often results in unintended mod- researchers discovered that it might be last year, it joined a host of superbugs at Urbana-Champaign. As precision
Creating Synthetic Wombs ifications and mutations that cannot be possible to record and store information already rampant elsewhere in the world. medicine, CRISPR, and gene therapy
easily controlled and could be dangerous. about cells as they age. The technique, a Each of them holds potential for massive technologies continue to advance and
In an experiment at Northwestern Gene vandalism is on the rise as more spread, and yet despite these hypothetical
University’s Feinberg School of Med- sort of biological DVR, uses the CRIS- improve, our storage needs will explode,
researchers experiment with CRISPR. PR-Cas system over a period of days. risks, most governments underspend on along with the computing power and
icine, researchers successfully printed emerging disease research. requirements for acquiring, distributing,
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analyzing, encrypting, and safeguard- purportedly eliminated the CCR5 gene in into effect, industrial pig farmers couldn’t the first for China. The United States and
ing our genomics data. As technology a pair of twin girls. That modification, the upgrade their facilities fast enough, South Korea are other existing markets
increasingly intertwines with biology, scientists hoped, would make the twins which led to farm closures and a rerout- for pet cloning, but the practice hasn’t
inadequate storage capacity and insuffi- resistant to HIV, smallpox, and cholera ing of the pork supply. Sick pigs were taken off there. In China, some worry, it
cient technology workflows for storing throughout their lives. It would also be shipped throughout the country, fueling could become more common.
all that data become evermore urgent the first instance of genetically modified the disease spread. China consumes a
issues—and the lack of planning so far humans—despite there being no global tremendous amount of pork, and it will De-Extincting Animals
becomes ever clearer. Australia’s Garvan norms and standards yet for this sort of take years to rebuild the swine popula-
Institute of Medical Research is looking human enhancement. In December 2019, tion. Enter genome editing: Dozens of In 2017, researchers plunged into the
into processes and workflows to reduce Chinese state media revealed that He’s gene-editing experiments and research waters off Lizard Island on the north-
the genomic data footprint in the future. work had resulted in additional births projects are now underway in China to eastern coast of Australia with some
beyond the twins. Authorities arrested develop new breads of disease-resistant, unexpected equipment in tow—a set of
him and sentenced him to three years in climate-acclimating, super pigs intended underwater loudspeakers. Their destina-
China’s Genetically Edited Babies tion was a coral reef that had been all but
prison for “illegal medical practices.” for consumption. The research could
In 2015, Chinese researchers edited the have a spillover effect in other areas of abandoned by a once-thriving population
genes of a human embryo. It was done in agriculture and medicine, and could ulti- of sea life. The researchers hoped that
a petri dish, but it quickly led scientists to Super Pigs by broadcasting the telltale sounds of a
mately speed along new regulations.
sound alarms about the potential of using In 2019, a major outbreak of swine fever healthy reef, they might lure back some
CRISPR to modify embryos during the devastated China’s stock and killed nearly of its vital inhabitants. Remarkably, it
in vitro fertilization process. Since then, a quarter of the global pig population. Unregulated Pet Cloning worked. This experiment was a unique
plenty of experimentation on human em- Though the disease was first reported in Sinogene, a Beijing-based commercial instance of rewilding, a holistic approach
bryos has ensued in China. In late 2018, a August 2018, it took the Chinese govern- pet cloning company, sequenced, cloned, to conservation that focuses on restoring
The longfin inshore squid on the left is unmodified,
with its original red dots visible. The right was
team of researchers led by Dr. He Jiankui ment a long time to act. Paradoxically, and delivered a cat named Garlic for a the natural phenomena of wilderness
edited using CRISPR-Cas9 to make it completely at the Southern University of Science and the disease spread because the Chinese 22-year-old businessman. Pet cloning is ecosystems, providing connective corri-
translucent. Technology in Shenzhen used CRISPR in government took positive steps to curb an unregulated business, and while Garlic dors between wild spaces, and reintro-
Image credit: Karen Crawford. conjunction with in vitro fertilization and pollution. After new regulations went wasn’t the world’s first cloned pet, he was ducing keystone species to their natural
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habitats. A term coined more than 30 Microbiome Extinction of meat available—means that we’re learn about fecal microbiomes. Investors The Post-Natural Age
years ago, rewilding has gained renewed A mass extinction event is happening ingesting compounds that are helping to have poured more than $1 billion into In the 20th century, biologists focused
attention in the past few years as the cli- right now in our guts and in the environ- destroy our own microbiomes. microbiome startups since 2016. on taking things apart—things such as
mate crisis has grown more dire and new ment. The widespread use of antibiotics, Humans are complex, composite or- tissues, cells, and proteins—to learn how
technologies have promised to protect along with diets rich in processed foods, ganisms, made up of layers and layers Building a Comprehensive Human they function. This century, synthetic
and rehabilitate ecosystems. have led to a staggering decline of micro- of cells. Researchers now think that our Cell Atlas biologists are focusing on intentional
organisms in wealthy nations. During the gut microbiome is directly linked to our design—improving organisms or con-
Researchers are building the first-ever
Microbe-Engineering as a Service past 12,000 years of human evolution, metabolism, our immune systems, our structing new materials from life’s build-
comprehensive map of all 37.2 trillion
Synthetic biology is an emerging field we’ve shifted nature’s balance—our diets central nervous systems, and even the ing blocks. We are transitioning from
human cells in the body. A large team
are now relatively narrow, compared to cognitive functions inside our brains. It’s natural selection to artificial selection to
that builds new life: replacement organs of scientists—including 130 software
our far-distant ancestors. Recently, sci- an inherited problem: Most of our mi- intentional design facilitated by synthetic
and soft tissue, as well as entirely new engineers, mathematicians, computa-
kinds of organisms never before seen entists studied modern hunter-gatherer crobiomes come to us from our mothers biology. The more powerful and more
tional scientists, biologists, clinicians,
on Earth. Zymergen, based in the Bay tribes in Tanzania, Peru, and Venezuela as we pass through the birth canal. A and physicists hailing from Israel, the refined that software design tools and
and found their microbiota had 50% number of researchers are now looking DNA technologies become, the more
Area, is developing original microbes for Netherlands, Japan, the UK, the U.S., and
more bacterial species than those in the at the future of our microbiomes. Ve- complex biological creations developers
making specialty polymers, which have Sweden—are mapping the human body
West today. Unlike those tribes, we no danta Biosciences is making gut bacteria will build. We have opened the door to
applications in military equipment and on a cellular level. Although a cell atlas
longer hunt and eat wild flora and fauna. that can be turned into drugs and counts the post-natural age.
electric vehicles. It raised $400 million in has long been theorized, new biological
Those from wealthier countries now eat the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as
its third round of funding from SoftBank tools and more powerful computers have
very little dietary fiber, a limited variety one of its investors. Startup uBiome has
Vision Fund, Goldman Sachs, Hanwha turned this one-time vision into a reality.
of fruits and vegetables, and only four launched several at-home microbiome
Asset Management, and others. Syn- These scientists believe a comprehensive
species of livestock: sheep, poultry, cattle, tests—although currently a subscription
thetic biologists at Ginkgo Bioworks reference map for all human cells in the
and pigs. Worse, widespread use of anti- is required for a test. The American Gut
build custom-crafted microbes for their body will give the medical community a
biotics in farm animals—used not neces- Project, the American Gastroenterolog-
customers. An example: designer bacteria new way of understanding how our bod-
sarily to prevent disease but to increase ical Association, and OpenBiome will
enabling crops to fertilize themselves. ies work and will help diagnose, monitor,
weight gain and therefore the volume track 4,000 patients over 10 years to and treat disease.
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