Construction of a Bacterial Cell that Contains Only the Set of Essential Genes Necessary to Impart Life

Abstract

We are working towards the goal of creating a bacterium that contains only the set of genes that are essential for life. Toward that end, we have continued to delete genes and gene clusters from the starting genome (M. mycoides JCVI-syn1.0). To date, the smallest viable genome with a reasonable doubling time is 778 kb. We have also made progress on the design and synthesis of a minimal genome. Construction of the initial design of minimized 1/8th genome molecules is complete, and assembly and transplantation experiments are in progress. The goal of the project is to create a cell that contains only the set of genes that are essential for life under ideal laboratory conditions.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 16, 2012
Accession Number
ADA570552

Entities

People

  • Anthony Yee
  • Clyde Hutchison
  • Hamilton Smith
  • John I Glass

Organizations

  • J. Craig Venter Institute

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Assembly
  • Construction
  • Contracts
  • Department Of Defense
  • Energy Production
  • Gel Electrophoresis
  • Governments
  • Information Operations
  • Micro-Machines
  • Molecules
  • Production
  • Standards
  • Transplantation
  • Viability

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Database Systems and Applications
  • Mathematics or Statistics
  • Molecular and genetic basis of cancer.

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology