Lea-Smith David J, Hassard Francis, Coulon Frederic, Partridge Natalie, Horsfall Louise, Parker Kyle D J, Smith Robert D J, McCarthy Ronan R, McKew Boyd, Gutierrez Tony, Kumar Vinod, Dotro Gabriella, Yang Zhugen, Krasnogor Natalio
University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
Cranfield University, Cranfield, UK.
Nat Commun. 2025 Apr 14;16(1):3538. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-58492-0.
Engineering biology applies synthetic biology to address global environmental challenges like bioremediation, biosequestration, pollutant monitoring, and resource recovery. This perspective outlines innovations in engineering biology, its integration with other technologies (e.g., nanotechnology, IoT, AI), and commercial ventures leveraging these advancements. We also discuss commercialisation and scaling challenges, biosafety and biosecurity considerations including biocontainment strategies, social and political dimensions, and governance issues that must be addressed for successful real-world implementation. Finally, we highlight future perspectives and propose strategies to overcome existing hurdles, aiming to accelerate the adoption of engineering biology for environmental solutions.
工程生物学应用合成生物学来应对全球环境挑战，如生物修复、生物固存、污染物监测和资源回收。本观点概述了工程生物学的创新成果、它与其他技术（如纳米技术、物联网、人工智能）的整合，以及利用这些进展的商业企业。我们还讨论了商业化和扩大规模的挑战、生物安全和生物安保方面的考虑因素，包括生物遏制策略、社会和政治层面，以及为在现实世界中成功实施而必须解决的治理问题。最后，我们强调了未来的展望，并提出克服现有障碍的策略，旨在加速工程生物学在环境解决方案中的应用。
