These discoveries, inventions and modifications are evidence of the application of biotechnology since before the common era and describe notable events in the research, development and regulation of biotechnology.
1919 – Károly Ereky, a Hungarian agricultural engineer, first uses the word biotechnology.
In 1919, a pivotal milestone was reached with the production of citric acid by Aspergillus niger, marking the inception of the first aerobic fermentation process. This breakthrough spurred the development of technologies to ensure the supply of sterile air at a large scale, paving the way for future advancements in industrial fermentation processes.
1952 – L.V. Radushkevich and V.M. Lukyanovich publish clear images of 50 nanometer diameter tubes made of carbon, in the Soviet Journal of Physical Chemistry.
1964 – The first commercial myoelectric arm is developed by the Central Prosthetic Research Institute of the USSR, and distributed by the Hangar Limb Factory of the UK.
1972 – The DNA composition of chimpanzees and gorillas is discovered to be 99% similar to that of humans.
1978 – North Carolina scientists Clyde Hutchison and Marshall Edgell show it is possible to introduce specific mutations at specific sites in a DNA molecule.
1980 – The U.S. patent for gene cloning is awarded to Cohen and Boyer.
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2008 – Japanese astronomers launch the first Medical Experiment Module called "Kibō", to be used on the International Space Station.
2010-Over the past two decades, a considerable focus has been directed toward creating sustainable alternatives for petroleum-based fuels, chemicals, and materials. Major players in the chemical industry, such as BASF, DSM, BP, and Total, have initiated significant projects and collaborations in metabolic engineering. Additionally, various startups have emerged with the goal of pioneering new bio-based processes for sustainable chemicals. Despite advancements in establishing large-scale processes, the overall impact on transitioning the chemical industry from petroleum-based to bio-based has been limited. For instance, efforts to engineer microbial production of succinic acid have faced challenges, leading to the termination or minimal-scale production of related research and commercial activities. Out of the chemicals listed by the US Department of Energy, only lactic acid and itaconic acid have achieved industrial-scale production. Lactic acid, added to the list in 2010 after large-scale production was established, currently holds a market value exceeding US$2.5 billion, primarily used in the production of polylactate.
2009 – Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute uses modified SAN heart genes to create the first viral pacemaker in guinea pigs, now known as iSANs.
2012 – Thirty-one-year-old Zac Vawter successfully uses a nervous system-controlled bionic leg to climb the Chicago Willis Tower.
2018-The Joint Centre of Excellence by Imperial College and the UK National Physical Laboratory focuses on advancing industry collaboration to transform high-value manufacturing into high-value products. Noteworthy progress includes the adoption of SBOL by ACS Synthetic Biology in 2016 and ongoing efforts, such as engagement with the BioRoboost project, aiming for international standards with partners from the USA, China, Japan, and Singapore.
2019 – Scientists report, for the first time, the use of the CRISPR technology to edit human genes to treat cancer patients with whom standard treatments were not successful.
The progression of commercial applications in synthetic biology is notably swift, propelled predominantly by investments directed towards start-up enterprises and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) engaged in the dissemination of tools, services, and products to the market. This is exemplified by the informational resource titled 'Synthetic Biology UK — A Decade of Rapid Progress,' disseminated online in July 2019 , which furnishes a demonstrative compilation of instances rooted in the United Kingdom.
2019 – In a study researchers describe a new method of genetic engineering superior to previous methods like CRISPR they call "prime editing".
5 February – Scientists develop a CRISPR-Cas12a-based gene editing system that can probe and control several genes at once and can implement logic gating to e.g. detect cancer cells and execute therapeutic immunomodulatory responses.
6 February – Scientists report that preliminary results from a phase I trial using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing of T cells in patients with refractory cancer demonstrates that, according to their study, such CRISPR-based therapies can be safe and feasible.
4 March – Scientists report that they have developed a way to 3D bioprintgraphene oxide with a protein. They demonstrate that this novel bioink can be used to recreate vascular-like structures. This may be used in the development of safer and more efficient drugs.
4 March – Scientists report to have used CRISPR-Cas9gene editing inside a human's body for the first time. They aim to restore vision for a patient with inherited Leber congenital amaurosis and state that it may take up to a month to see whether the procedure was successful. In an hour-long surgery study approved by government regulators doctors inject three drops of fluid containing viruses under the patient's retina. In earlier tests in human tissue, mice and monkeys scientists were able to correct half of the cells with the disease-causing mutation, which was more than what is needed to restore vision. Unlike germline editing these DNA modifications aren't inheritable.
9 March – Scientists show that CRISPR-Cas12b is a third promising CRISPR editing tool, next to Cas9 and Cas12a, for plant genome engineering.
14 March – Scientists report in a preprint to have developed a CRISPR-based strategy, called PAC-MAN (Prophylactic Antiviral Crispr in huMAN cells), that can find and destroy viruses in vitro. However, they weren't able to test PAC-MAN on the actual SARS-CoV-2, use a targeting-mechanism that uses only a very limited RNA-region, haven't developed a system to deliver it into human cells and would need a lot of time until another version of it or a potential successor system might pass clinical trials. In the study published as a preprint they write that the CRISPR-Cas13d-based system could be used prophylactically as well as therapeutically and that it could be implemented rapidly to manage new pandemic coronavirus strains – and potentially any virus – as it could be tailored to other RNA-targets quickly, only requiring a small change. The paper was published on 29 April 2020.
16 March – Researchers report that they have developed a new kind of CRISPR-Cas13d screening platform for effective guide RNA design to target RNA. They used their model to predict optimized Cas13 guide RNAs for all protein-coding RNA-transcripts of the human genome's DNA. Their technology could be used in molecular biology and in medical applications such as for better targeting of virus RNA or human RNA. Targeting human RNA after it has been transcribed from DNA, rather than DNA, would allow for more temporary effects than permanent changes to human genomes. The technology is made available to researchers through an interactive website and free and open source software and is accompanied by a guide on how to create guide RNAs to target the SARS-CoV-2 RNA genome.
16 March – Scientists present new multiplexed CRISPR technology, called CHyMErA (Cas Hybrid for Multiplexed Editing and Screening Applications), that can be used to analyse which or how genes act together by simultaneously removing multiple genes or gene-fragments using both Cas9 and Cas12a.
10 April – Scientists report to have achieved wireless control of adrenal hormone secretion in genetically unmodified rats through the use of injectable, magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and remotely applied alternating magnetic fields heats them up. Their findings may aid research of physiological and psychological impacts of stress and related treatments and present an alternative strategy for modulating peripheral organ function than problematic implantable devices.
14 April – Researchers report to have developed a predictive algorithm which can show in visualizations how combinations of genetic mutations can make proteins highly effective or ineffective in organisms – including for viral evolution for viruses like SARS-CoV-2.
15 April – Scientists describe and visualize the atomical structure and mechanical action of the bacteria-killing bacteriocin R2 pyocin and construct engineered versions with different behaviours than the naturally occurring version. Their findings may aid the engineering of nanomachines such as for targeted antibiotics.
8 May – Researchers report to have developed artificialchloroplasts – the photosynthetic structures inside plant cells. They combined thylakoids, which are used for photosynthesis, from spinach with a bacterial enzyme and an artificial metabolic module of 16 enzymes, which can convert carbon dioxide more efficiently than plants can alone, into cell-sized droplets. According to the study this demonstrates how natural and synthetic biological modules can be matched for new functional systems.
11 May – Researchers report the development of synthetic red blood cells that for the first time have all of the natural cells' known broad natural properties and abilities. Furthermore, methods to load functional cargos such as hemoglobin, drugs, magnetic nanoparticles, and ATP biosensors may enable additional non-native functionalities.
10 July – Scientists report that after mice exercise their livers secrete the protein GPLD1, which is also elevated in elderly humans who exercise regularly, that this is associated with improved cognitive function in aged mice and that increasing the amount of GPLD1 produced by the mouse liver could yield many benefits of regular exercise for the brain.
17 July – Scientists report that yeast cells of the same genetic material and within the same environment age in two distinct ways, describe a biomolecular mechanism that can determine which process dominates during aging and genetically engineer a novel aging route with substantially extended lifespan.
24 July – Scientists report the development of a ML-based process using genome databases for designing novel proteins. They used inverse statistical physics to learn the patterns of amino acid conservation and co-evolution to identify design-rules.
8 September – Scientists report that suppressing activin type 2 receptors-signalling proteins myostatin and activin A via activin A/myostatin inhibitorACVR2B – tested preliminarily in humans in the form of ACE-031 in the 2010s – can protect against both muscle and bone loss in mice. The mice were sent to the International Space Station and could largely maintain their muscle weights – about twice those of wild type due to genetic engineering for targeted deletion of the myostatin gene – under microgravity.
18 September – Researchers report the development of two active guide RNA-only elements that, according to their study, may enable halting or deleting gene drives introduced into populations in the wild with CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing. The paper's senior author cautions that the two neutralizing systems they demonstrated in cage trials "should not be used with a false sense of security for field-implemented gene drives".
25 November – Scientists report the development of micro-droplets for algal cells or synergistic algal-bacterial multicellular spheroidmicrobial reactors capable of producing oxygen as well as hydrogen via photosynthesis in daylight under air, which may be useful as a hydrogen economy biotechnology.
2 December – The world's first regulatory approval for a cultivated meat product is awarded by the Government of Singapore. The chicken meat was grown in a bioreactor in a fluid of amino acids, sugar, and salt. The chicken nuggets food products are ~70% lab-grown meat, while the remainder is made from mung bean proteins and other ingredients. The company pledged to strive for price parity with premium "restaurant" chicken servings.
0 Scientists report the discovery of unknown species of bacteria of Methylobacterium, tentatively named Methylobacterium ajmalii, associated with three new strains, designated IF7SW-B2T, IIF1SW-B5, and IIF4SW-B5, on the ISS. These potentially have ecological significance in closed microgravity systems.
A study finds that, despite suboptimal implementation, the snapshot mass-testing for COVID-19 of ~80% of Slovakia's population at the end of October 2020 was highly efficacious, decreasing observed prevalence by 58% within one week and 70% compared to a hypothetical scenario of no snapshot-mass-testing.
0 Scientists present a tool for epigenome editing, CRISPRoff, that can heritably silence the gene expression of "most genes" and allows for reversible modifications.
0 Scientists report the, controversial, first creation of human-monkey hybrid embryos – some survived for 19 days.
0 Scientists develop a light-responsive days-lasting modulator of circadian rhythms of tissues via Ck1 inhibition which may be useful for chronobiology research and repair of organs that are "out of sync".
0 Biologists report the development of a new updated classification system for cell nuclei and find a way of transmuting one cell type into that of another.
0 Researchers present a bioprinting method to produce steak-like cultured meat, composed of three types of bovine cell fibers.
Bioengineers report the development of a viable CRISPR-Cas gene-editing system, "CasMINI", that is about twice as compact as the commonly used Cas9 and Cas12a.
Media outlets report that the world's first cultured coffee product has been created, still awaiting regulatory approval for near-term commercialization. It was also reported that another biotechnology company produced and sold "molecular coffee" without clear details of the molecular composition or similarity to cultured coffee except having compounds that are in green coffee and that a third company is working on the development of a similar product made from extracted molecules. Such products, for which multiple companies' R&D have acquired substantial funding, may have equal or highly similar effects, composition and taste as natural products but use less water, generate less carbon emissions, require less and relocated labor and cause no deforestation.
Researchers report the world's first artificial synthesis of starch. The material essential for many products and the most common carbohydrate in human diets was made from CO2 in a cell-free process and could reduce land, pesticide and water use as well as greenhouse gas emissions while increasing food security.
Media outlets report that in Japan the first CRISPR-edited food has gone on public sale. Tomatoes were genetically modified for around five times the normal amount of possibly calming GABA. CRISPR was first applied in tomatoes in 2014.
Biomedical researchers demonstrate a switchable Yamanaka factors-reprogramming-based approach for regeneration of damaged heart without tumor-formation with success in mice if the intervention is done immediately before or after a heart attack.
0 A new eco-friendly way of extracting and separatingrare earth elements is described, using a bacteria-derived protein called lanmodulin, which binds easily to the metals.
Medical researchers announce that on 25 September the first successful xenotransplantation of a, genetically engineered, pig kidney, along with the pig thymus gland to make the immune system recognize it as part of the body, to a brain-dead human with no immediate signs of rejection, moving the practice closer to clinical trials with some of the living humans waiting for kidney transplants.
Bionanoengineers report a novel therapy for spinal cord injury – an injectable gel of nanofibers that contain moving molecules that cause cellular repair signaling and mimic the matrix around cells. The therapy enabled paralyzed mice to walk again.
Scientists report the development of a vaccine of mRNAs for the body build 19 proteins in tick saliva which, by enabling quick development of erythema (itchy redness) at the bite site, protects guinea pigs against Lyme disease from ticks.
Sri Lanka announces that it will lift its import ban on pesticides and herbicides, explained by both a lack of sudden changes to widely applied practices or education systems and contemporary economics and, by extension, food security, protests and high food costs. The effort for the first transition to a completely organic farming nation was challenged by effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A team of scientists reports a new form of biological reproduction in the, <1 mm sized, xenobots that are made up of and are emersed in frog cells.
0A method of DNA data storage with 100 times the density of previous techniques is announced.
Scientists demonstrate that grown brain cells integrated into digital systems can carry out goal-directed tasks with performance-scores. In particular, playing a simulated (via electrophysiological stimulation) Pong which the cells learned to play faster than known machine intelligence systems, albeit to a lower skill-level than both AI and humans. Moreover, the study suggests it provides "first empirical evidence" of information-processing capacity differences between neurons from different species. Such technologies are referred to as Organoid Intelligence (OI).
Researchers report the development of face masks that glow under ultraviolet light if they contain SARS-CoV-2 when the filter is taken out and sprayed with a fluorescent dye that contains antibodies from ostrich eggs.
Scientists report the development of a genome editing system, called "twin prime editing", which surpasses the original prime editing system reported in 2019 in that it allows editing large sequences of DNA, addressing the method's key drawback.
An mRNA vaccineagainst HIV with promising results in tests with mice and primates is reported.
A vaccine to remove senescent cells, a key driver of the aging process, is demonstrated in mice by researchers from Japan.
Scientists call for accelerated efforts in the development of broadly protective vaccines, especially a universal coronavirus vaccine that durably protects not just against all SARS-CoV-2 variants but also other coronaviruses, including already identified animal coronaviruses with pandemic potential.
The first CRISPR-gene-editedseafood and second set of CRISPR-edited food has gone on public sale in Japan: two fish[vague] of which one species grows to twice the size of natural specimens due to disruption of leptin, which controls appetite, and the other grows to 1.2 the natural size with the same amount of food due to disabled myostatin, which inhibits muscle growth.
0Genetic engineers report field test results that show CRISPR-based gene knockout of KRN2 in maize and OsKRN2 in rice increased grain yields by ~10% and ~8% and did not find any negative effects.
Publication of research reporting the sequencing of the remaining gap of the Human genome.
0Scientists report the first 3D-printedlab-grown wood. It is unclear if it could ever be used on a commercial scale (e.g. with sufficient production efficiency and quality).
[relevant?]DeepMind announces that its AlphaFold program has uncovered the structures of more than 200 million foldedproteins, essentially all of those known to science.
First report of Synthetic embryos grown exclusively from mouse embryonic stem cells, without sperm or eggs or a uterus, with natural-like development and some surviving until day 8.5 where early organogenesis, including formation of foundations of a brain, occurs. They grew in vitro and subsequently ex utero in an artificial womb developed the year before by the same group.
0News reports about the development in China of an edible, plant-based ink derived from food waste, which could be used in 3D printing of scaffolds to reduce the cost of cultured meat.
Medical applications
Some of these items may also have potential nonmedical applications and vice versa.
[relevant?]Scientists regrow the missing legs of adult frogs, which are naturally unable to regenerate limbs, within 1.5 years using a five-drug mixture applied for 24 hours via a silicone wearable bioreactor.[relevant?]
0[relevant?]A new therapy called CINDELA is reported by scientists in South Korea, which uses CRISPR-Cas9 to kill cancer cells without harming normal tissues.
[relevant?]Success of record-long (3 days rather than usually <12 hours) of human transplant organ preservation with machine perfusion of a liver is reported. It could possibly be extended to 10 days and prevent substantial cell damage by low temperature preservation methods. On the same day, a separate study reports new cryoprotectant solvents, tested with cells, that could preserve organs by the latter methods for much longer with substantially reduced damage.
[relevant?]Researchers describe a new light-activated 'photoimmunotherapy' for brain cancerin vitro. They believe it could join surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy as a fifth major form of cancer treatment.
[relevant?]Researchers, health organizations and regulators are discussing, investigating and partly recommending COVID-19 vaccine boosters that mix the original vaccine formulation with Omicron-adjusted parts – such as spike proteins of a specific Omicron subvariant – to better prepare the immune system to recognize a wide variety of variants amid substantial and ongoing immune evasion by Omicron.
[relevant?]Scientists report an organ perfusion system that can restore, i.e. on the cellular level, multiple vital (pig) organs one hour after death (during which the body had warm ischaemia), after reporting a similar method/system for reviving (pig) brains hours after death in 2019. This could be used to preserve donor organs or for revival in medical emergencies.
[relevant?]Lab-made cartilage gel based on a synthetic hydrogel composite is found to have greater strength and wear resistance than natural cartilage, which could enable the durable resurfacing of damaged articulating joints.
[relevant?]A bioengineeredcornea made from pig's skin is shown to restore vision to blind people. It can be mass-produced and stored for up to two years, unlike donated human corneas that are scarce and must be used within two weeks.
[relevant?]A weak spot in the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 is described by researchers, which an antibody fragment called VH Ab6 can attach to, potentially neutralising all major variants of the virus. On 11 August, researchers report a single antibody, SP1-77, that could potentially neutralize all known variants of the virus via a novel mechanism, not by not preventing the virus from binding to ACE2 receptors but by blocking it from fusing with host cells' membranes.
A new malaria vaccine developed by the University of Oxford is shown to be ~80% effective at preventing the disease.
0A study adds to the accumulating research indicating postexposure antiviral TIPs could be an effective countermeasure that reduces COVID-19 transmission.
0India and China approve the two first nasalCOVID-19 vaccines which may (as boosters) also reduce transmission (sterilizing immunity).
Nanoengineers report the development of biocompatible microalgaehybrid microrobots for active drug-delivery in the lungs and the gastrointestinal tract (GT). The microrobots are related to medical nanobots and proved effective in tests with mice. A separate team reports the development of 'RoboCap', a robotic drug delivery capsule that enhances drug absorption by tunneling through the mucus layer in the GT.
0A magnetical guidance system with engineered bacterialmicrobots(see also above) for 'precision targeting' is demonstrated to be effective for fighting cancer in mice.
The growing of electrodes in the living tissue of zebrafish (including in the brain) and medicinal leeches is demonstrated, using an injectable gel and the animals' own endogenous molecules to trigger the formation. The researchers claim their breakthrough enables "a new paradigm in bioelectronics."
Biological organoid intelligence, 'Brainoware', is demonstrated to solve computational tasks in a preprint, with implications for bioethics and potential bottlenecks and limits of nonbio-AI.
Researchers report in a preprint the CRISPR alternative Fanzor naturally present in eukaryotes with several potential advantages over CRISPR in genome editing, notably smaller size and higher selectiveness. A separate team further demonstrates the potential of this class of genome editors.
A new method to deliver drugs into the inner ear is demonstrated with a gene-therapy against hearing loss in mice.
Scientists use CRISPR gene-editing to reduce the lignin content in poplar trees by as much as 50%, offering a potentially more sustainable method of fiber production.
Researchers demonstrate the use of ants as biosensors to detect cancer via urine, a mice-tested engineered probiotic against autoimmunity in the brain as in multiple sclerosis, mice-tested engineered bacteria to detect cancer DNA, 3D printed of hair follicles on lab-grown skin.
AI in drug development successes
The world's first COVID-19 drug designed by generative AI is approved for human use, with clinical trials expected to begin in China. The new drug, ISM3312, is developed by Insilico Medicine.
The first successful transplant of a functional cryopreservedmammalian kidney is reported. The study demonstrates a "nanowarming" technique for vitrification for up-to-100 days preservation of transplant organs.
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