Good for the World
The world inspires our work, as current poor conditions in the ocean motivate innovation of ocean cleanup methods. Marine life around the world has been negatively impacted by plastic pollution. For example, in March of 2018, a whale washed up on the shore of the Philippines with 88 lbs of plastic in its stomach (1). With this in mind, we wanted to incorporate our ideas to solve the problem of pollution into an organism native to the ocean: cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae. This problem helped us generate our idea to modify cyanobacteria with the ability to remove plastic from the ocean.
Through the iGEM competition we were able to decide what problem we wanted to solve. iGEM inspired us to realize that we can all make a change in the world. The goal of our work is to affect the world for the better: Keeping with the theme of synthetic biology, we genetically modified cyanobacteria which can be used to improve the conditions of the oceans, ocean life, and those impacted by ocean life.
Our research can help repair oceanic ecosystems to undo some of the damage already done by human activity. This is the start of a new solution to making our oceans green once again.
Good for Humans
Removing plastics from the ocean is inherently good for humans too. One third of all plastic waste ends up in soil or freshwater. The plastic is disintegrated into smaller particles, which have now entered the food chain (5). Humans have already been impacted by the microplastics found in bodies of water, as a study has found plastic particles in human feces (3). When plastics are broken down, new physical and chemical properties are gained, increasing the risk of toxicity. When plastics are degraded into nano size particles inflammation, traverse cellular barriers, and the crossing of highly selective membranes can be seen in organisms (3). . PET plastic is commonly use to pack soft drinks, water , juice, house hold cleaners and many more things that we use in our daily life. This is why we are aiming for PET plastic degradation, because not only would our project improve ocean ecosystems, but the improvement of these ecosystems would improve human and marine health as well.
Additionally, removing plastics from the ocean is one of many ways to compensate for the damage humans have done to the environment. Collectively, this project could be a way to lighten our consciences regarding the harms of pollution.
Exploration and Approach
We first considered ethics of biosynthetic technology and modification with the Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions, who suggested that we consider the social responsibilities of our work before and during the span of our project.
As we explored different topics we considered the problem of plastic pollution in the ocean. Initially, we suggested a way to prevent further pollution using by implementing bioplastics into our project. However, after further consideration, we discovered that we wanted to focus on the reduction of existing ocean pollutants.
So, we researched information about the bacterium Ideonella sakaiensis, which is capable of breaking down and consuming polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a common plastic found in water bottles (2). Our innovative approach was to integrate this into an organism native to the ocean biome, so we chose S. elongatus, a type of blue-green algae, to be genetically modified with the PETase gene from I. sakaiensis.
Ethics for Future Directions
Short Term
Before the modified organism is released into the natural environment, there are many health, safety, and environmental regulations that must be met first. We are working with cyanobacteria, and thus will be adhering to the guidelines of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) who regulate the planting, importation or transportation of Genetically modified plants under the Plant Protection Act (6), as well as the guidelines of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) who regulate pesticides and microorganisms developed through genetic engineering. There are three ways that APHIS grants authorization to use GM plants: notification procedure, permit procedure, and determination of nonregulated status (6). Getting our product approved is a very long process, but realistic and this is our eventual intention.
Long Term
Prior to full implementation of our product, a much more rigorous ethical and investigation needs to take place. The effects of the introduction of genetically modified organisms into an ocean biome and the effects of the byproducts of the breakdown of PET, among other things, would need to be investigated before the solution can be ethically implemented. Despite this task, we are confident that these considerations will lead to a realistic and effective remedy for ocean pollution.
As biomedical engineers, these considerations are inspired by the Biomedical Engineering Society Code of Ethics and their process of revision. Since the field of biomedical engineering is relatively new and constantly developing, the Code of Ethics undergoes regular revisions to account for new developments. The full implementation of our work is relatively untreaded ground for the field, and as such, the integration of our design into a natural environment would prompt a new module of ethical discussion, in which we hope to remain active participants.
Citations
- Borunda, Alejandra. “This Young Whale Died with 88 Pounds of Plastic in Its Stomach.” National Geographic, 22 Mar. 2019, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/03/whale-dies-88-pounds-plastic-philippines/.
- Hornigold, Thomas, et al. “How Cyanobacteria Could Help Save the Planet.” Singularity Hub, 31 Jan. 2019, https://singularityhub.com/2018/06/04/how-cyanobacteria-could-help-save-the-planet/.
- Long, Kat. “New Species of Bacteria Eats Plastic.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 10 Mar. 2016, https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-species-of-bacteria-eats-plastic-1457636401.
- Spence, Edward, et al. “Membrane-Specific Targeting of Green Fluorescent Protein by the Tat Pathway in the Cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC6803.” Molecular Microbiology, vol. 48, no. 6, Dec. 2003, pp. 1481–1489., doi:10.1046/j.1365-2958.2003.03519.x.
- Whitaker, Hannah. “How the Plastic Bottle Went from Miracle Container to Hated Garbage.” National Geographic, 24 Aug. 2019, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/08/plastic-bottles/.
- Wüstneck, Bernd. “In a First, Microplastics Found in Human Poop.” National Geographic, 23 Oct. 2018, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/10/news-plastics-microplastics-human-feces/.
- Yoshida, Shosuke, et al. “A Bacterium That Degrades and Assimilates Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate).” Science, vol. 351, no. 6278, Oct. 2016, pp. 1196–1199., doi:10.1126/science.aad6359.