From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design
Traditional materials synthesis often involves energy-intensive processes with significant waste generation and limited control over material properties. This review examines synthetic biology as a sustainable alternative for designing advanced materials with enhanced precision and versatility. It e...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| Series: | BioChem |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6411/5/2/12 |
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| author | Roshini Ramachandran Frank Macabenta Grace Bettencourt Shulammite Feng |
| author_facet | Roshini Ramachandran Frank Macabenta Grace Bettencourt Shulammite Feng |
| author_sort | Roshini Ramachandran |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Traditional materials synthesis often involves energy-intensive processes with significant waste generation and limited control over material properties. This review examines synthetic biology as a sustainable alternative for designing advanced materials with enhanced precision and versatility. It explores microbial biomineralization, detailing how microorganisms influence the formation of mineral deposits and participate in key biogeochemical cycles. It highlights recent research advancements in using a wide variety of microorganisms for the synthesis of inorganic materials such as metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, quantum dots, magnetic nanoparticles, and thin films. The review also discusses the production and properties of various biopolymers. Important factors that can influence the size, morphology, and uniformity of these biomaterials are covered in detail. Emphasis is placed on advancements utilizing synthetic biology tools, such as protein engineering and genome editing, and recent research for creating smart and responsive materials. Considering the present limitations of synthetic biology, challenges related to scale-up, yield, and uniformity are discussed, and suggestions for future research are detailed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3f9e275b74fa44cdb33fe091da62f156 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2673-6411 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BioChem |
| spelling | doaj-art-3f9e275b74fa44cdb33fe091da62f1562025-08-20T02:24:39ZengMDPI AGBioChem2673-64112025-05-01521210.3390/biochem5020012From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials DesignRoshini Ramachandran0Frank Macabenta1Grace Bettencourt2Shulammite Feng3Department of Biology and Chemistry, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USADepartment of Biology and Chemistry, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USADepartment of Biology and Chemistry, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USADepartment of Biology and Chemistry, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USATraditional materials synthesis often involves energy-intensive processes with significant waste generation and limited control over material properties. This review examines synthetic biology as a sustainable alternative for designing advanced materials with enhanced precision and versatility. It explores microbial biomineralization, detailing how microorganisms influence the formation of mineral deposits and participate in key biogeochemical cycles. It highlights recent research advancements in using a wide variety of microorganisms for the synthesis of inorganic materials such as metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, quantum dots, magnetic nanoparticles, and thin films. The review also discusses the production and properties of various biopolymers. Important factors that can influence the size, morphology, and uniformity of these biomaterials are covered in detail. Emphasis is placed on advancements utilizing synthetic biology tools, such as protein engineering and genome editing, and recent research for creating smart and responsive materials. Considering the present limitations of synthetic biology, challenges related to scale-up, yield, and uniformity are discussed, and suggestions for future research are detailed.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6411/5/2/12synthetic biologybiopolymernanotechnologybiomineralizationMICP |
| spellingShingle | Roshini Ramachandran Frank Macabenta Grace Bettencourt Shulammite Feng From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design BioChem synthetic biology biopolymer nanotechnology biomineralization MICP |
| title | From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design |
| title_full | From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design |
| title_fullStr | From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design |
| title_short | From Microbes to Molecules: Synthetic Biology Approaches for Advanced Materials Design |
| title_sort | from microbes to molecules synthetic biology approaches for advanced materials design |
| topic | synthetic biology biopolymer nanotechnology biomineralization MICP |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-6411/5/2/12 |
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