Our work on a dual-layer biocontainment platform is published in @nchembio. We showed near-perfect biocontainment with chemical + physical strategies. A collaboration between the @timlu and @ProfZhaoMIT labs. Free to read here: https://rdcu.be/ch6o3  https://www.nature.com/articles/s41589-021-00779-6

Many exciting synbio tools are invented every day. To use them in the real world, we don't want any genetic materials to escape so those wild bugs could acquire some undesirable traits. @eleonoretham, @xinyue1liu, and I propose the DEPCOS platform for the safe deployment of GMOs.

The core-shell structure could encase many different cell types and form various geometries. The tough hydrogel developed by the Zhao lab provides secure physical containment (for both cells and DNA), protection against insults, and allows for the diffusion of analytes/chemicals.

The GROs technologies developed by @lexrovner and the Isaacs lab at Yale added an extra layer of protection to the DEPCOS. These engineered cells need an artificial chemical to survive and could not replicate even when they escaped from the compromised/broken hydrogel devices.

The DEPCOS platform is compatible with most genetic circuits/tools developed so far. For example, cells can record exposure to chemicals in their genomic DNA and communicate with other cells in different hydrogel beads through quorum sensing. They also sense blood in the liquid!

Finally, we showed that the DEPCOS system robustly detects (added) cadmium ions in the water sample taken from the Charles River, showing its potential for real-world uses. We are grateful for the support from @jwafs_mit and co-authors @Yehl_Lab @HyunwooYuk @delafuenteupenn.