DNA tool kit goes live online
March 19, 2013
(Credit: BIOFAB)
BIOFAB, based in Emeryville, California, which calls itself “the world’s first biological design-build facility,” has announced availability of DNA sequences that allow precise control of gene activity in the bacterium Escherichia coli, Nature News reports.
Launched in 2009 with a US$1.4-million grant from the National Science Foundation, BIOFAB aims to advance synthetic biology by creating standard biological ‘parts’ in the form of DNA sequences that control gene expression. These standard sequences should allow biologists to engineer cells that can make medicines and perform other useful tasks simply by plugging in various sets of genes.
Users are able to use BIOFAB’s computer-aided-design software tools to more efficiently design and construct new biological parts, using BIOFAB’s libraries of standard biological parts.
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References:
- Vivek K Mutalik et al., Quantitative estimation of activity and quality for collections of functional genetic elements, Nature Methods, 2013, DOI: 10.1038/nmeth.2403
- Vivek K Mutalik, et al., Precise and reliable gene expression via standard transcription and translation initiation elements, Nature Methods, 2013, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2404
Comments (2)
by vaidy
OPINION: Giving the DNA tool kit still requires good intelligence to understand what is going on in a complex world of genes, is it necessarily advancing or cure for all. The specialist doctor is still needed to decipher the readouts, is it indeed?
by alvaro
This is the first of many “Biofab” .