Microbiome engineering using light-activated synthetic cells

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Developing tools to understand and manipulate interactions within the microbiome isof vital importance for studying human health and as future therapies. Synthetic cells,gene-expressing compartments assembled from simple, modular parts, can be used tocommunicate and manipulate natural cells. We have previously generated lightactivatedsynthetic cells that can modulate the expression of neighbouring bacteria bysynthesising quorum-sensing molecules in-situ, following illumination. In this project,synthetic cells will be engineered to detect and modulate changes in bacterial colonieswith the ultimate goal of spatiotemporal microbiome engineering.