What's Happening?
Researchers at Scripps Research Institute have developed a synthetic biology platform called T7-ORACLE, which accelerates protein evolution thousands of times faster than natural processes. This platform uses a modified E. coli bacteria to host an artificial DNA replication system derived from bacteriophage T7, allowing for continuous and precise evolution of proteins inside cells. The system introduces mutations at a rate 100,000 times higher than normal without damaging the host cells, offering potential applications in therapeutic areas such as cancer and neurodegeneration.
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Why It's Important?
The T7-ORACLE platform represents a significant advancement in protein engineering, which is crucial for developing new therapies and understanding drug resistance. By accelerating the evolution process, researchers can quickly identify and optimize proteins with desired functions, potentially leading to breakthroughs in treating complex diseases. This technology could revolutionize the way proteins are engineered for therapeutic use, offering a faster and more efficient method for drug discovery and development.
What's Next?
The research team plans to use T7-ORACLE to evolve human-derived enzymes for therapeutic applications and tailor proteases to recognize specific cancer-related protein sequences. The platform's ability to evolve polymerases that can replicate entirely unnatural nucleic acids opens up possibilities in synthetic genomics. As the technology advances, it may lead to new treatments for various diseases and expand the capabilities of synthetic biology in drug development.
