on July 28, 2021
Humans have harnessed the power of microbes for centuries, for example using yeast to make bread, beer, yogurt and wine via fermentation. These living organisms are useful to us because they perform chemical reactions as part of their everyday life. Today, we can use microbes to produce many valuable chemical compounds, such as biofuels (including methane and ethanol) and medical products (such as antibiotics). We can also use micro-organisms to recyle wastewater by eliminating dissolved organic matter. Over the past two decades, scientists have investigated how humans can use new biological systems that do not occur in nature. For instance, bacteria can be genetically modified to act as “bio-sensors”, and light up in the presence of certain compounds, such as oil or even pathogens. We can also engineer species to work with other microbes, which could lead to entirely new biological systems with enhanced capabilities. Over the past 10 years, the use of these microbial consortia (or co-populations) have become more common. By associating different bio-engineered microbes with one another, the new community can perform different tasks and even outperform those possible with a single species. For example, if one of the two species produces acetate (which is toxic) when consuming glucose to perform a certain task (such as production of a valuable compound), a second species bioengineered “to eat” the acetate could be introduced to detoxify the environment.
Article for The Conversation by Alex dos Reis de Souza
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