July 24, 2012

BioPlaytime

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

The afternoon after the synthetic biology lecture at NanoLab was BioPlaytime, where we engineered E. coli with genes that produce multicolor pigments, painted with living cells, and designed our own mini-iGEM projects.

We engineered bacterial cells with a mixture of DNA coding for multicolor pigments, including fluorescent proteins and the E. chromi genes (many thanks to BioBuilder for providing the violacein plasmids and tremendous educational resources!). Spreading the mixture onto petri dishes created beautiful abstract "paintings" (above).

Touching these cells with a toothpick and spreading them onto empty petri dishes makes invisible paintings that grow overnight. Microbial art like this has a long history, back to the 1930's when Alexander Fleming--the scientist who discovered penicillin--created "germ paintings" with pigmented bacteria.

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

The students also brought their creativity to a different kind of bio-making, by imagining mini iGEM projects. There was a huge range between the different groups, from bacteria that block UV rays to create living sunblock, genetic systems that shuffle DNA and activate evolution, and luminescent bacteria to decorate your Christmas tree.

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American