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Mei Lu's Research Group Create A New Microbes That Expand Our Lifespan
Meet Mei Lu, aged just 21, she is making a new microbe that may consume an unprecedented Level of carbon dioxide CO2…and perhaps expand our lifespan. Apart from that, she finds a potential solution to the junction of two vast issues of the current century— climate change and aging populations.
When Mei Lu's research group requested her to check out the masses of leaves in various quantities of atmospheric pollution, she has no idea the investigation would lead to a novel solution to the intersection of two mega problems of the 21st century. The two issues that Mei Lu has solved are; aging populations and climate change.
The college sophomore, who studied economics and biology with an emphasis on environmental sustainability, was working on a research paper on leaf mass of woody plants in various atmospheric pollution levels. This was when she noticed that certain types of leaves were more efficient at absorbing CO2 than others. By applying stochastic simulations—an instrument for costing likelihood distributions of possible outcomes—Lu may find a schedule among the genes moved by the plants better at ingesting carbon dioxide (CO2).
Understanding she was to anything major, Lu analyzed 60,000 gene candidates, ultimately getting 500 combinations of critical genes from various microbes and bacteria that she could test. The goal was to get which genes worked together most effectively to absorb CO2.
By applying full-cell modeling, Lu created a cell design integrating these genes and believed improvements in cell design, cell size, cell form, and moment of chromosome synthesis in a reaction to carbon sequestration.
When it comes to the result, Lu created a novel, original microbe that she called YColi-200. The microbe's name shows its origins in genes from fungus, E. coli, and 200 other genes.
To create YColi-200, Lu started with her small cell design and used computational gene-editing tools such as, for example, CRISPR-associated nuclease Cas9 to create the microbe. First, she identified overlapping genes of E. coli and yeast, then she deleted and disabled genes in both E.coli and yeast's mitochondria so they might merge into one microbe. After that, She added 200 essential genes to optimize carbon intake. According to her model's test results, YColi-200 is approximately twelve times more efficient at capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) than yeast or E-coli on its own. And when measuring the behavior of YColi-200, she noticed unusual behavior that could extend the human lifespan.
The newly created mitochondria Mei Lu of YColi-200 produced less reactive oxygen species (ROS) than E. coli and yeast. ROS is an all-natural by-product of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production. However, they damage several critical cell signaling pathways during oxidative stress and as well as damage DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), proteins, and fatty acids. This is revealed to be one of the main processes associated with aging-related health decline.
YColi-200's low ROS production might be explained by its increased transcription of genes associated with ROS scavenging, increased physiological uncoupling, increased energy metabolism in the mitochondria, and decreased expression of genes to signal transduction, stress response. All of these above mentioned factors can extend cell lifespan—around 700x in yeast, as shown by many studies completed previously century. Lu is in the process of further practical lab testing to see if these traits of YColi-200 will result in an increased lifespan on her microbe.
Meanwhile, Mei is excited to explore the promising signs shown in the mitochondria of YColi-200 and whether those signs may unlock a solution to aging. Furthermore, She also wants to see YColi-200 get commercialized. She has generated an enhanced planting soil that will be able to capture 380% more carbon dioxide (CO2) than regular soil. She currently has patents approved, a group, and two angel investors backing this startup.