(573b) Young Faculty Talk (1): Engineering Cellular Processes through Synthetic Control

The past decade has witnessed the tremendous power of synthetic biology in the creation of genetic parts, devices, and systems, which helps understand complex biological systems.  However, its potential for real-world applications has not been fully exploited.  One of its promising applications is the construction of programmable cells that are able to integrate multiple environmental signals and to implement synthetic control over biological processes.  My research interests are focused on developing microbes that are able to process multiple input signals and to generate user-defined outputs.  Specifically, I aim to build genetic programs in order to control various bacterial processes such as gene expression, chemical reactions, and evolution.  I will present examples of my research projects to discuss the potential and challenges of synthetic biology for practical applications.