Editorial pubs.acs.org/synthbio
Synthetic Biology in Europe Tom Ellis*
T
he cell, the gene, DNA and the central dogma are all landmark discoveries from scientists from around Europe that have defined the past two centuries of biological sciences and have ultimately led to the work of synthetic biology today. European scientists are now playing a major role in developing new tools and technologies to push synthetic biology in exciting new directions and are also shaping the future of the field through their many successful iGEM undergraduate teams. In this issue, we present a collection of 15 papers that highlight some of the great work underway in a variety of laboratories from across the continent of Europe. Addressing the design level of synthetic biology are papers from Swiss, British and Spanish groups. Hadidi et al. describe the construction and use of their ATLAS database of biochemistry, a compehensive resource for designing metabolic engineering studies, while Misirli et al. present SyBiOntan ontology for synthetic biology for data integration and for part mining. Looking at the full process from design through to application, Goñ i-Moreno et al. describe an algorithmic workflow for projects that pair in silico modeling with experimental work and also use the Standard European Vector Architecture (SEVA). The SEVA standard is also key to one of four papers addressing work at the DNA level. Kim et al. describe new standard linker sequences for SEVA that allow plasmid backbones to be easily exchanged, while for modular DNA assembly, Moore et al. describe EcoFlex, a new flexible Golden Gate cloning kit for E. coli. Milbredt et al. go up a scale from plasmids, investigating DNA replication in engineered E. coli genomes with extra replication origins. Martella et al. also look at chromosomes, but this time in eukaryotes, reviewing the prospects for construction and implementation of artificial chromosomes in mammalian cells. For gene expression regulation, Lebar and Jerala also look at mammalian synthetic biology and benchmark the efficiencies of TALE- and CRISPR/dCas9-based regulators used for building genetic circuits. Back in bacteria, Kelly et al. describe how E. coli’s rhamnose-inducible promoter can be converted into a chemically inducible promoter with defined orthogonal characteristics, and Libis et al. reveal how computer-aided design of metabolic pathways can enable regulated promoters to respond to usually undetectable compounds. Exploiting engineered regulation, Briat et al. design, analyze and build a synthetic integral feedback circuit that enables robust perfect adaptation, and Gnügge et al. investigate a new way to generate bistability by controlling the expression of an orthogonal permease that creates a synthetic feedback loop. Claes et al. develop a modular system to enhance expression of membrane proteins in Pichia pastoris, and Ohlendorf et al. Introduce PATCHY, a strategy for design of linker libraries in the engineering of hybrid photoreceptors. Finally, van Heel et al. exploit the promiscuous nisin modification machinery for the discovery, production and modification of 5 novel lantibiotics. Enjoy this European special issue! © 2016 American Chemical Society
Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, and Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
Yizhi Cai*
■
School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Old College, South Bridge, Edinburgh EH8 9YL, U.K.
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Authors
*E-mail:
[email protected]. *E-mail:
[email protected]. Notes
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
Special Issue: Synthetic Biology in Europe Received: September 27, 2016 Published: October 21, 2016 1033
DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.6b00265 ACS Synth. Biol. 2016, 5, 1033−1033
