Glowing Plants: thank you all!
Enthusiasts managed to raise money to create a glowing plant
The project of creating a glowing plant, Glowing Plants, has successfully completed the collection of donations on the Kickstarter site. As stated on the project page, its authors managed to attract 484 thousand dollars out of the planned half a million, and they are going to get the rest of the funds at the expense of the online store.
The project involves the introduction of genes synthesizing the enzyme luciferase and its substrate luciferin into the genome of the classical model plant of the rhesus Thalia (Arabidopsis thaliana). A similar paired design was previously tested in bacteria, the authors of the project are going to adapt it to work in plants. According to them, the entire theoretical part of the project has already been completed and now it is required to finance the synthesis of DNA itself, which is carried out by commercial companies.
According to the authors, the project fully complies with US laws concerning the creation and distribution of genetically modified plants. Nevertheless, opponents of synthetic biology have already sharply criticized it not only in the publications of eco-activists, but also in The Guardian.
Experts interviewed by Nature, however, doubt that the plant will be able to produce enough energy to be clearly visible at night (Glowing plants spark debate). Previously, scientists had already introduced the luciferase gene into tobacco, which gave only a slight greenish glow.
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10.06.2013