Tobacco Plants Can Turn Into Solar-Powered Factories for Moth Sex Pheromones Thru Gene Engineering

Researchers at the Earlham Institute in Norwich have developed a method for precisely modifying genes that allows tobacco plants to function as solar-powered pheromone factories.

Importantly, they have demonstrated how the production of these chemicals can be effectively controlled to not interfere with typical plant growth.

Engineered Plants Produce Sex Perfume as Companion Planting

(Photo : YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images)

Complex molecules known as pheromones are created and delivered by an organism as a form of communication. They enable symbiotic communication, which includes alerting others to one's romantic intentions, as per Phys.org.

In order to trap or distract male insects from mating, farmers can place pheromone dispersers amid their crops to mimic the signals of female insects.

Chemical techniques can manufacture some of these compounds, however, chemical synthesis is frequently expensive and results in harmful byproducts.

Modern technology is used by Dr. Nicola Patron, who is the study's principal investigator and the director of the Earlham Institute's Synthetic Biology Group, to encourage plants to create these priceless natural compounds.

DNA's structural components are subjected to engineering concepts in synthetic biology. Dr. Patron and her team are able to transform a plant, like tobacco, into a factory that simply requires water and sunlight by engineering genetic modules that contain the instructions to produce new molecules.

According to Dr. Patron, synthetic biology can be used to modify plants to generate more of what they already produce or to give them the genetic instructions necessary to create new biological molecules, such as these pheromones or medications.

In their most recent research, the team engineered the tobacco plant Nicotiana benthamiana to create moth sex pheromones in collaboration with researchers at the Plant Molecular and Cell Biology Institute in Valencia.

For use in COVID vaccines, the same plant has already been modified to produce ebola antibodies and even coronavirus-like particles.

The Group created novel DNA sequences in the lab that closely resemble the moth genes and added a few molecular switches to precisely control their expression, which effectively turns the manufacturing process on and off.

The capacity to precisely control pheromone production was a crucial aspect of the new research because forcing plants to continuously produce these chemicals has disadvantages.

The group got to work in the lab testing and fine-tuning the regulation of genes in charge of creating a combination of certain chemicals that imitate the sex pheromones of moth species, such as navel orangeworm and cotton bollworm moths.

They demonstrated that copper sulfate could be utilized to precisely regulate gene activity, enabling them to regulate both the time and intensity of gene expression. This is especially crucial because copper sulfate is a cheap, easily accessible chemical that has previously received approval for use in agriculture.

They could even precisely control the creation of various pheromone components, adjusting the resulting concoction to better suit particular moth species.

The group hopes that by employing plants regularly, a variety of important natural goods will be produced.

Also Read: GMO 'Kill Switch' Makes Them Safer for Nature

Potential Negative Impacts Of Synthetic Biology Tools

The environment and human health may suffer greatly if genetically modified organisms are unintentionally or accidentally released into the environment, as per UNEP.

Strict risk analysis and consideration of many stakeholder perspectives should be used in the creation and management of cutting-edge synthetic biology applications and products, in accordance with the precautionary principle.

The precautionary principle asserts that action should be made to prevent or lessen harm when human activities may cause unacceptable damage that is scientifically probable but unclear.

Do-It-Yourself biology, or "DIY Bio," is another recent discovery. Over the past ten years, a movement of "citizen scientists" interested in synthetic biology experiments has gained international notoriety.

Enthusiasts gather in impromptu labs to conduct experiments and attend crash courses in biotechnology, frequently with little prior experience in the topic.

The trend has quickly grown because of straightforward web protocols and specialized kits that cost between $150 and $1,600 USD.

There are DIY Bio laboratories in almost all major cities, and as of 2017, there were roughly 168 organizations globally.

The use of readily available and inexpensive technology like CRISPR will probably be difficult for authorities to regulate. A rising concern is that radical organizations might abuse the technology.