synthetic biology papers

Bacterial whole-cell biosensors illuminate spatially variable sialic acid availability within the inflamed mammalian gut

This study utilizes engineered *Escherichia coli* whole-cell biosensors to map the complex, spatially variable bioavailability of host-derived sialic acids within the inflamed mammalian gut, revealing distinct regional dynamics between metabolite availability and inflammation while demonstrating the utility of this approach for monitoring rapid metabolic turnover and guiding therapeutic interventions.

Carreno, D., Robinson, C. M., Jackson, R. + 6 more2026-02-28📄 synthetic biology

Tunable Low-Rate Genomic Recombination with Cre-lox in Escherichia coli: A Versatile Tool for Anoxic Environmental Biosensing and Synthetic Biology

This study presents a tightly regulated, tunable Cre-lox recombination system in *Escherichia coli* that enables low-rate, heritable genetic memory recording, demonstrated by the development of a sensitive whole-cell biosensor capable of detecting and storing anoxic arsenite exposure for delayed aerobic readout.

Garabello, E., Yoon, H., Reid, M. C. + 1 more2026-02-24📄 synthetic biology

A portable orthogonal replication system enables continuous gene evolution near the biological speed limit

This paper presents a significantly upgraded, portable orthogonal replication system (EcORep and VinORep) that drives continuous gene evolution near the biological speed limit by enabling ultra-high mutation rates and rapid functional optimization in *E. coli* and *Vibrio natriegens*.

Tian, R., Rehm, F. B. H., Kenneth, M. + 4 more2026-02-24📄 synthetic biology

CyanOperon: an operon building expansion for the CyanoGate MoClo toolkit

The paper introduces CyanOperon, an expansion of the CyanoGate MoClo toolkit that enables the hierarchical assembly and expression of synthetic operons with up to six genes in both *E. coli* and *Synechocystis* sp. PCC 6803, demonstrated through violacein production, RBS spacer optimization, and comparative expression studies.

Astbury, M. J., Schiavon Osorio, A. A., Victoria, A. J. + 1 more2026-02-24📄 synthetic biology

High avidity phase-separated RNA-protein sialogranules sense lectins and inhibit influenza infection

This study demonstrates that programmable, phase-separated RNA-protein sialogranules can be engineered to display high-avidity sialic acid ligands, enabling them to sense lectins and function as effective antiviral decoys that inhibit influenza virus entry.

Willinger, O., Granik, N., Salomon, T. + 2 more2026-02-22📄 synthetic biology

Boosted cell-free gene expression for robust signal readout from a single-copy DNA template in microdroplets

This study enhances cell-free gene expression in microdroplets from single-copy DNA templates by approximately 10-fold through a simple optimization that combines supplementing highly active T7 RNA polymerase with reducing ribosome concentration, thereby enabling robust protein detection and functional screening in DNA-scarce environments.

Furubayashi, T., Terasaka, N., Tajima, K. + 1 more2026-02-22📄 synthetic biology

A Scalable Design for Proximity-Inducing Molecules

This paper introduces GRIPs (GRoup-transfer chimeras for Inducing Proximity), a scalable and versatile platform that utilizes abundant effector inhibitors and a diverse toolbox of group-transfer handles to create chimeric molecules for editing post-translational modifications, thereby overcoming the scalability limitations of traditional chimeras and enabling new therapeutic functionalities.

Karaj, E., Venkatarangan, V., Sindi, S. H. + 20 more2026-02-21📄 synthetic biology

Virus-free continuous directed evolution in human cells using somatic hypermutation

The authors developed CODE-HB, a virus-free continuous directed evolution platform that repurposes human B cell somatic hypermutation mechanisms to rapidly evolve diverse proteins, including neutralizing antibodies against influenza, directly within human cells without compromising genome-wide fitness.

Bram, S., Orea, D. J., Lindsey, G. + 6 more2026-02-19📄 synthetic biology

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