Policymakers are looking to biotechnology as they seek better ways to meet the needs of nearly eight billion people while conserving resources and protecting nature - all in the context of volatile market conditions. Let’s cheer on five biotechs delivering practical solutions to improve sustainability and then touch on instilling integrity in life science.
New Programs for COP28
COP28 will be the first time the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will host a climate-health ministerial program to articulate priority investments and policy actions that will address burdens on health systems. U.N. ministerial programs involve governments, investors, and knowledge partners (including biologists). This newly launched healthcare program aligns well with the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate launched at COP26 to increase climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation over five years (2021 – 2025). The COP28 meeting will hold new programs across food, agriculture, water, nature conservation, and land use topics.
Healthcare and food system concerns have only deepened since the pandemic. Scientists proclaimed for years prior that environmental conditions influence the interconnection of human beings as hosts with livestock and wildlife pathogen reservoirs which results in infectious disease outbreaks (i.e. H1N1, Ebola). (1) It was acknowledged that modern trade and travel could give local epidemics global reach. Even so, each country’s systems were caught off guard during the pandemic. Healthcare system surge capacity was exceeded in many parts of the world. Food supply chains underwent shocks, (i.e. avian flu outbreaks in poultry). Waste management infrastructure struggled. The experience put resource conservation and waste prevention issues into the spotlight.
During the pandemic, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) argued for involving molecular biology in a green recovery. That message was echoed in the 2022 PLOS Biology perspective; Molecular biology for green recovery—A call for action when biologists urged a community-wide response to bring molecular biology out from the fringe into the forefront of climate change solutions in food and agriculture, fuel, and chemicals, and ecosystem modulations. Based on the new COP28 programs, the U.N. has recognized the need for investments that go beyond energy technologies and into the life science domain.
Cultivated seafood, Biofarbrication, regenerative agriculture, Eco-designed diagnostics, and insect-for-feed
Here are a few intriguing examples of biotechnology products designed to help solve sustainability issues. If you know of an interesting one not mentioned here, add it in the comments!
Animal-free seafood from BluU Seafood:
Wild fisheries are jeopardized by overfishing and habitat degradation. Food security is a top priority among the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals with targets to end overfishing, protect and restore ecosystems and achieve "zero hunger". BluU Seafood is biomanufacturing fish finger food products using non-GMO, immortalized cell lines that grow in animal-free media - with salmon and trout filets in development.
Cellulose fibers from captured carbon for manufacturing textiles from Rubi Earth:
The fashion industry is responsible for approximately 10 % of annual global carbon emissions. Rubi Earth uses cell-free synthesis to produce cellulose from CO2 feedstock for fabric manufacturers and others. Rubi Earth recently introduced its pilot manufacturing partnership with Walmart to explore how Rubi’s modular reactor systems could integrate on-site to CO2-producing facilities at manufacturers in the supply chain to capture and convert CO2. Their industrial biomanufacturing allows for 100% of feedstock to be converted into product. Very efficient, indeed!
Regenerative agriculture systems from Locus Fermentation Solutions (Locus FS):
Seventy-eight percent of global water pollution is due to agriculture. Nitrogen and phosphorus-based eutrophication of water bodies causes dense growth of plant life and death of animals from lack of oxygen. Regenerative agriculture is a better way that depends on replacing chemistry with biological soil treatments. Locus Fermentation Solutions produces microbes, metabolites, and biosurfactants used in many industries. Their agriculture division directly supports farmers who increase crops and minimize greenhouse gas emissions with materials that outperform conventional chemical fertilizers. Locus FS’s near-zero carbon biomanufacturing footprint is triumphant!
Improved direct-to-consumer medical diagnostics tests from Gemina Labs:
Billions of lateral flow tests (LFTs) were used during the pandemic. LFTs are inexpensive, easy to use, and stable at room temperature. First-line-of-defense diagnostics helped keep societies moving. LFTs also have the potential to combat antimicrobial resistance, an urgent public health threat. (Of course, antibiotics themselves are a critical non-renewable resource!) The drawback of self-administered, single-use testing is environmental. There is no pooled sample option to minimize testing material waste. What are the desired improvements? Next-generation LFTs aim to incorporate green manufacturing and extend access in low-income regions. (2) Recently, the Gemina Labs team enabled biodegradable cellulose in place of standard nitrocellulose LFT strips. Their Gemina Bridge molecule anchors biomolecules to test strips made from a variety of cellulose materials, all of which are fully biodegradable alternatives to nitrocellulose. On top of that, biomolecule requirements were reduced by 85% in tandem to save reagents. That’s some impressive molecular work!
Food waste upcycling using insect-to-feed from Ento Industries:
The majority of the world’s annual ~1.3 billion tonnes of edible food waste is landfilled or incinerated. Meanwhile, approximately one-third of global cropland is used to grow livestock feed. Ento Industries is a “yellow biotech” providing an insect-to-feed system to upcycle food waste in Singapore. These issues are particularly urgent in Singapore because 90% of the food supply is imported. There is a universal urgency because the conventional low-cost protein ingredients of animal feed are soy and fish meal. The costs of producing these materials and importing them have risen sharply. Ento Industries uses large-scale black soldier fly larvae colonies to consume food waste because it is more efficient than typical food waste recycling that requires sorting and separation. The larvae become sustainable feed for farmed fish and poultry and are also used to manufacture pet food. Brilliant!
An interview with Nathaniel Phua, founder of Ento Industries, Ltd.
Sustainability in laboratory work and scientific designs is salient
Biologists should consider how integrity in life science can help propel discoveries into concrete benefits for society and nature. Incorporating environmental stewardship into scientific projects and lab work demonstrates commitment. Today, policymakers are signaling interest in life science capabilities. Biologists have long advocated for protecting nature. Should we expect the world to listen if we ignore pollution generated by life science work itself? Let’s be sincere in word and action to build trust to serve the greater good.
Citations:
Schmeller DS, Courchamp F, Killeen G. Biodiversity loss, emerging pathogens, and human health risks. Biodivers Conserv. 2020;29(11-12):3095-3102. doi: 10.1007/s10531-020-02021-6. Epub 2020 Aug 13. PMID: 32836920; PMCID: PMC7423499.
Budd, J., Miller, B.S., Weckman, N.E. et al. Lateral flow test engineering and lessons learned from COVID-19. Nat Rev Bioeng 1, 13–31 (2023).
