Engineered Microbial Spores for Provenance Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for determining the origin of agricultural products and manufactured goods are labor-intensive and unreliable, and existing microbial-based approaches are not scalable or sensitive enough for rapid identification.
Innovation Solution
A synthetic, scalable microbial spore system that uses engineered microorganisms with genetic barcodes to identify object provenance by persisting on surfaces and allowing for rapid and specific decoding, compatible with industrial-scale growth and bio-containment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If natural microbial communities are used to determine object provenance, then the approach is cheap and highly sensitive, but the microbial compositions are not reliably large or stable enough to uniquely identify specific locations and require extensive, expensive, and time-consuming mapping of natural environments
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms natural microbial communities into engineered microbial spores with modified parameters - specifically incorporating synthetic genetic barcodes and auxotrophic mutations. This parameter change enables reliable, unique identification of specific locations without requiring extensive environmental mapping, as the barcodes provide direct provenance information.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates synthetic copies of microbial spores with embedded genetic barcodes that replicate location information. These engineered spores are distributed to specific locations and later detected on objects, copying the provenance information directly rather than requiring complex environmental surveys to infer location.
2Productivity
If engineered microorganisms are introduced into the environment for provenance tracking, then rapid and sensitive decoding is achieved, but bio-containment and environmental safety concerns arise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the potential harm of engineered microorganisms entering the environment into a benefit by designing auxotrophic spores that require specific nutrients only available at designated locations. This ensures the spores can persist and transfer provenance information rapidly while being inherently contained to specific environments, preventing uncontrolled ecological spread.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by making each engineered spore strain specific to a particular location through location-specific auxotrophic requirements and genetic barcodes. This local adaptation ensures rapid provenance determination at each site while preventing cross-contamination between different locations, as spores cannot survive or replicate outside their designated environment.
3Ease of manufacture
If standard labeling technologies are used, then the process is simple to implement, but it is prohibitively labor-intensive and easy to remove or replace
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical labeling systems (stickers, tags, labels) with a biological system - engineered microbial spores that naturally adhere to and persist on objects. This substitution eliminates the labor-intensive application and removal processes of traditional labels while providing tamper-evident, permanent provenance tracking, as the spores integrate with the object surface and cannot be easily removed without detection.
Data Source
AI summary
The technology described herein is directed to compositions and methods for determining provenance of an item, a non-limiting example being a food item. In one aspect described herein is an engineered microorganism comprising at least one genetic barcode element, essential gene mutations, and/or germination gene mutations. In another aspect described herein is a method of determining the provenance of an item comprising contacting the item with an engineered microorganism and later detecting the genetic barcode element to determine the provenance of the item. In another aspect, described herein is a method of determining the path of an item or individual across a surface.