Reblogged from sciencenote
“Essentially, we have expanded the genetic code of E. coli, which allows us synthesize special forms of proteins that can mimic natural or disease states,” said Jesse Rinehart of the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology and co-corresponding author of the research published in the Aug. 26 issue of the journal Science. Since the structure of DNA was revealed in the 1950s, scientists have been working hard to understand the nature of the genetic code. Decades of research and recent advances in the field of synthetic biology have given researchers the tools to modify the natural genetic code within organisms and even rewrite the universal recipe for life. (via Protein-making machinery in bacteria successfully re-engineered)
