Deconstructing synthetic biology across scales: A conceptual approach for training synthetic biologists
Karim, Ashty S.; Brown, Dylan M.; Archuleta, Chloé M.; Grannan, Sharisse; Aristilde, Ludmilla; Goyal, Yogesh; Leonard, Josh N.; Mangan, Niall M.; Prindle, Arthur; Rocklin, Gabriel J.; Tyo, Keith J.; Zoloth, Laurie; Jewett, Michael C.; Calkins, Susanna; Kamat, Neha P.; Tullman-Ercek, Danielle; Lucks, Julius B.
2024

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Abstract

Synthetic biology allows us to reuse, repurpose, and reconfigure biological systems to address society’s most pressing challenges. Developing biotechnologies in this way requires integrating concepts across disciplines, posing challenges to educating students with diverse expertise. We created a framework for synthetic biology training that deconstructs biotechnologies across scales—molecular, circuit/network, cell/cell-free systems, biological communities, and societal—giving students a holistic toolkit to integrate cross-disciplinary concepts towards responsible innovation of successful biotechnologies. We present this framework, lessons learned, and inclusive teaching materials to allow its adaption to train the next generation of synthetic biologists.

Details

Title
Deconstructing synthetic biology across scales: A conceptual approach for training synthetic biologists
Author
Karim, Ashty S. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5789-7715)
Brown, Dylan M. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8153-7683)
Archuleta, Chloé M. : Northwestern University
Grannan, Sharisse : Northwestern University
Aristilde, Ludmilla : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8566-1486)
Goyal, Yogesh : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3502-6465)
Leonard, Josh N. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4359-6126)
Mangan, Niall M. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3491-8341)
Prindle, Arthur : Northwestern University
Rocklin, Gabriel J. : Northwestern University
Tyo, Keith J. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2342-0687)
Zoloth, Laurie : University of Chicago
Jewett, Michael C. : Stanford University
Calkins, Susanna : Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science : (http://orcid.org/0009-0001-3653-0236)
Kamat, Neha P. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9362-6106)
Tullman-Ercek, Danielle : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6734-480X)
Lucks, Julius B. : Northwestern University : (http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0619-6505)
Content Type
Article
Published in
Nature Communications
Identifier(s)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-49626-x
Data availability statement
The full set of deidentified responses used for thematic analysis in Table 1 can be made available upon reasonable request pending ethical consideration of intended use.
Funding Information
National Science Foundation, SynBAS NRT program, 2021900
Bachrach Family Foundation
Publication Date
2024-06-26
Language
English
Copyright Statement

© The Author(s) 2024

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

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Record Created
2024-06-26

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