1. Synthetic gene circuit evolution: Insights and opportunities at the mid-scale.
- Author
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Helenek, Christopher, Krzysztoń, Rafał, Petreczky, Julia, Wan, Yiming, Cabral, Mariana, Coraci, Damiano, and Balázsi, Gábor
- Subjects
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SYNTHETIC genes , *CELL populations , *GENOMES , *MUTAGENESIS , *DNA - Abstract
Directed evolution focuses on optimizing single genetic components for predefined engineering goals by artificial mutagenesis and selection. In contrast, experimental evolution studies the adaptation of entire genomes in serially propagated cell populations, to provide an experimental basis for evolutionary theory. There is a relatively unexplored gap at the middle ground between these two techniques, to evolve in vivo entire synthetic gene circuits with nontrivial dynamic function instead of single parts or whole genomes. We discuss the requirements for such mid-scale evolution, with hypothetical examples for evolving synthetic gene circuits by appropriate selection and targeted shuffling of a seed set of genetic components in vivo. Implementing similar methods should aid the rapid generation, functionalization, and optimization of synthetic gene circuits in various organisms and environments, accelerating both the development of biomedical and technological applications and the understanding of principles guiding regulatory network evolution. [Display omitted] Helenek, Krzysztoń et al. describe "mid-scale evolution," the process of developing and optimizing entire synthetic gene circuits as they evolve naturally, with potential human interventions inside living cells. This offers the capability to rapidly generate, characterize, and optimize gene circuits in various applications and conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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