Synthetic biology: restructuring the Escherichia coli genome

描述(申请人提供)：合成生物学是一个新兴领域，其目标是设计和合成具有特定功能的新生物实体。在这样做的过程中，合成生物学家将开发出自下而上研究生物学的方法和彻底改变医学的技术。要做到这一点，需要使用成熟的分子生物学技术来合成生物系统和有机体。 我们选择合成一种重组的大肠杆菌菌株，它具有改变的密码子偏见，将作为未来合成生物学项目的支架。这一目标是触手可及的，科学界已经对整个病毒基因组进行了类似的构建。该项目将依赖于使用聚合酶辅助的多重基因合成和同源重组进行基因组合成，这两种技术已经分别用于合成大部分基因组DNA和创造基因工程生物。 此外，最近微流控DNA合成的发展降低了寡核苷酸合成的成本，使细菌基因组的全合成在经济上是可行的。这些有利的经济条件，加上首次成功的细菌合成，将启动未来的项目，开发具有破坏肿瘤、药物合成和生物监测功能的细菌菌株。 具有新特性的生物的设计和合成在生物技术和医学上是有用的。由于活体的能量效率和功能极其特殊，用于疾病检测、根除疾病和药物生产的活体设备可以非常具体和节能的方式执行所需的功能。合成生物学的工作已经产生了医学诊断、生物合成药物，并正在帮助管理来自潜在的“禽流感”大流行的威胁。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Synthetic biology is an emerging field that has as its goal the design and synthesis of new biological entities with specific functions. In doing so, synthetic biologists will develop methods to study biology from a bottom up approach and technologies that revolutionize medicine. To accomplish this requires the use of well established molecular biology techniques to synthesize biological systems and organisms. We have chosen to synthesize a restructured Escherichia coli strain that has an altered codon bias that will serve as a scaffold for future synthetic biology projects. This goal is within reach, with the scientific community having performed similar constructions of entire viral genomes. The project will rely on genome synthesis using polymerase assisted multiplex gene synthesis and homologous recombination, techniques already used independently to synthesize large portions of genomic DNA and create genetically engineered organisms, respectively. In addition, the recent development of microfluidic DNA synthesis has lowered the cost of oligonucleotide synthesis, making the total synthesis of bacterial genomes economically feasible. These favorable economics coupled with the first successful bacteria synthesis will initiate future projects that develop strains of bacteria with functions including the destruction of tumors, the synthesis of Pharmaceuticals, and biomonitoring. The design and synthesis of organisms with novel properties is useful to biotechnology and medicine. Because living organisms are energetically efficient and extremely specific in their functions, living devices for disease detection, disease eradication, and pharmaceutical production can perform needed functions in a very specific and energy efficient manner. Work in synthetic biology has already yielded medical diagnostics, biologically synthesized Pharmaceuticals, and is helping to manage threats from the potential 'bird-flu' pandemic.