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Computer-Controlled Cyborg Yeast

Posted by samzenpus on from the all-your-bread-are-belong-to-us dept.

MrSeb writes "With a slightly weird world first, scientists have formed a feedback loop between common, baking and brewing yeast, and a computer. The computer can trigger the yeast to produce a protein, and the yeast then feeds back to the computer how much of the protein is being produced — the computer has exact control over the yeast's production. This work, performed by scientists at the Automatic Control Laboratory at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, is exceptional because of its simplicity: The computer turns the yeast on by flashing a red light, and it turns the yeast off by flashing a deeper red light. Connected to the yeast is a 'reporter' molecule that fluoresces when the protein is produced. The computer can see this fluorescence and alter the light it emits, thus creating a full feedback loop. The simplicity is significant because of the role of yeasts and bacteria in the production of antibiotics, biofuels, and more. The problem is controlling those organisms — so far, scientists have tried to genetically add synthetic control circuits, with limited success... and now the Swiss have shown that it can be done by simply shining a couple of lights."

34 of 61 comments (clear)

  1. And thus begins.... by MrTester · · Score: 1

    ... the zombie apocalypse.

    1. Re:And thus begins.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      But at least then we can turn the zombies off with deep red lights.

    2. Re:And thus begins.... by Mythran · · Score: 1

      Zombies...in search for brains...will walk right past me and leave me alone...[un]fortunately...

  2. Re:Awesome! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Asshole! DON'T CLICK!

  3. As a synthetic microbiologist by acidfast7 · · Score: 2

    there is nothing cyborg about this. and, i hope that the original scientists did not sell the work this way.

    1. Re:As a synthetic microbiologist by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 3, Funny

      Actually, the best way to sell it is to call it iYeast and say it's a cloud-based service.

      --
      "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    2. Re:As a synthetic microbiologist by bityz · · Score: 1

      Mod Up! Funny (and True)

    3. Re:As a synthetic microbiologist by Big_Monkey_Bird · · Score: 1

      there is nothing cyborg about this. and, i hope that the original scientists did not sell the work this way.

      Yeah. I hope the authors are more...

      (takes off sunglasses)

      ...candid.

  4. Unemployment Up - Computer-Yeast Cyborgs Blamed by UnresolvedExternal · · Score: 2
    FTA:

    More awe-inspiringly, though — or perhaps more worryingly, if you’re a pessimist — the computer-yeast process is completely automated.

    That computer-yeast is takin urrr jaaaaauuuubbbssss!

  5. This work, performed by scientists at the... by kungfugleek · · Score: 1

    I think you meant: "This work, performed by MAD scientists at the Automatic Control Laboratory..."

  6. Evolution by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    eventually yeast that does not shut off due to the light will emerge, due to trial and error evolutionary process. Then you're SoL... well of course until you make new yeast which reacts to a different light, or use a stronger light.. but if you're going down that route why don't you just hire Monsanto and get it over with.

    1. Re:Evolution by nedlohs · · Score: 1

      Or dispose of that yeast and put in more of the original yeast into your vat.

  7. Yeast Infection by stevegee58 · · Score: 1

    Wouldn't wanna get one from this sh1t.

    1. Re:Yeast Infection by captainpanic · · Score: 1

      You would start walking at every red traffic light, and only stop when you see a really impressive deeper red light: ("that's deep, dude... whoa... I think I'll stop now").

    2. Re:Yeast Infection by stevegee58 · · Score: 3, Funny

      Roxanne, you don't have to turn on the red light.
      And definitely NOT the deeper red light.

    3. Re:Yeast Infection by vlm · · Score: 1

      You would start walking at every red traffic light, and only stop when you see a really impressive deeper red light: ("that's deep, dude... whoa... I think I'll stop now").

      Interaction with the "red light district" is going to be complicated.

      --
      "Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
  8. As a wacko alarmist nutjob, I say . . . by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 3, Funny

    there is nothing cyborg about this.

    . . . yet . . .

    "Oh, my God! The vat of yeast has formed into a giant yeast-hand, which is fiddling with the flashing red light control!"

    Beware of the coming yeast infection . . .

    --
    Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
  9. Never thought... by siliconsmiley · · Score: 1

    The dark future would begin with the yeast-machine interface.

  10. Cyborg part... by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 1

    The cyborg part of this- is that cyborg women can now get a cyborg yeast infection by shining a red light at them.

    --
    "That's the way to do it" - Punch
  11. I wonder how good cyborg beer by Hentes · · Score: 1

    could that yeast brew.

    1. Re:I wonder how good cyborg beer by sincewhen · · Score: 1

      I hope the project is open source, because then...

      FREE AS IN BEER!!!

      --
      -- Braden's law of data: All data spends some of its lifetime in an excel spreadsheet.
  12. Here is the actual paper by damn_registrars · · Score: 1

    A reversibly photoswitchable GFP-like protein with fluorescence excitation decoupled from switching
    Of course, since it is in a Nature subjournal, you'll need to pay for it or find an institution to grab the full text from.

    --
    Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
  13. Here's a link to the original publication. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nbt.2018.html

    A minor clarification to TFS: "The problem is controlling those organisms — so far, scientists have tried to genetically add synthetic control circuits, with limited success... and now the Swiss have shown that it can be done by simply shining a couple of lights."
     
    The control circuit genes still have to be added synthetically (or at least added in conjunction with a suitable promoter sequence (in this case, Gal1 which has a binding site for Gal4 - part of the fusion construct responsible for the light activation). The fact is that there are several well documented transcription control mechanisms (lac operon, trp operon, arabinose promoter etc) that are currently used at the industrial scale for microbes. The lights are new, but since the reporter gene in this case (YFP) was being read using flow cytometry, this is very unlikely to be cheaper or easier to work with. Most of us will stick with good old IPTG for inducing gene expression in our microbes.

  14. Hmmm by scubamage · · Score: 1

    As I often write in my blog, I am a homebrewer. So, does this mean that we could create cyborg yeast to brew beer? Cyberbeer! You could control things like attenuation, flocculation, etc.It'd be really interesting to see the possibilities.

    1. Re:Hmmm by jd · · Score: 1

      It could be interesting, but it'll be a while. Extracting 45-million year old strains of brewing yeast from amber sounds much more fun (and cheaper) - Wired ran a story on how to do this and I'm planning on giving it a go at some point. The challenge is to identify what's brewing yeast and what's lethal bacteria. Before it kills you.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    2. Re:Hmmm by scubamage · · Score: 1

      Psh, that's what rhesus monkeys are for! If you get it wrong, well, back to the drawing board. If you get it right??? DRUNK MONKEYS!

  15. TFA redefines "easily" by bityz · · Score: 1
    from TFA:

    To begin with, this would just be a manufacturing boon, but it could easily end with computers growing new humans (or skinjobs?) from vats of stem cells.

    Interesting technology. Interesting possibilities. Poor story.

  16. As an AI researcher... by Okian+Warrior · · Score: 5, Informative

    Cyborg is short for "cybernetic organism".

    Cybernetics is the communication/interface (and control systems) between living things and machines.

    So... this really is a cybernetic organism.

  17. Misread Title by Hungus · · Score: 1

    You know you have read too much Sci Fi when:
    You misread the headline of "Computer-Controlled Cyborg Yeast" as "Computer Controlled Cyborg Yeats" and start looking over your shoulder for the Shrike's 3rd cousin and the Shrubbery of annoyance.

    --
    Bad Panda! No Bamboo for you! In matters of importance ACs will not be responded to. Want to say something critical,OK
  18. Imagine the applications... by Arcaeris · · Score: 2

    Imagine if such proteins could be embedded into human cells. It would be amazing if you could implant cells that would release chemicals to fight cancer, or fight disease. Development of this technology could be the first step to engineering our bodies better than nature has done for us, say by releasing antibiotics automatically when light is shined on certain cells.

    Also, imagine if you could embed cells or proteins that give you an orgasm when a red light is flashed on you. It would give a whole new meaning to "red light district."

  19. Could be a big deal by tsotha · · Score: 1

    This could be a big deal for biofuels. Biofuel companies already have organisms that produce fuels, but are having trouble scaling up the process because all the bugs die if anything is the slightest bit off.

  20. Re:Obligatory by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    Perhaps it will increase our breadboards.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  21. Computer-Controlled Cyborg Beetles! by Garabito · · Score: 1

    I think this is more impressing: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=cyborg-beetles

  22. Brewing Implications by matthew_t_west · · Score: 1

    Wow. This has some implications for the craft/homebrew yeast companies. Control over reproduction rate and when it occurs at a more granular level... Although this can be controlled by providing food and adequate temperature, this may be something they could use. I'm thinking of these types of businesses:

    http://www.wyeastlab.com/

    http://www.whitelabs.com/

    Oh, and Left Coast Represent!

    --
    Browse at 1. You'll thank me later.