Biomanufacturing

Biomanufacturing•Aug 24, 2026

Researchers Made a Cookie From Plastic Waste, but Nobody Has Tasted It Yet

Engineered yeasts converted chemicals from PET bottles and crop waste into proteins, beta-carotene and vanilla flavoring for a 3D-printed cookie. The NASA-backed prototype could recycle waste into food in remote places, but it has not received approval for human taste tests and the results are not yet peer reviewed.

Biomanufacturing•Aug 22, 2026

Tiny Artificial Cells Put Designed Proteins Through a Five-Day Test

PUREdrop expressed redesigned proteins inside thousands of cell-sized droplets and filmed how they assembled over time. The automated platform found three altered versions of a bacterial division protein, but the droplets are not living cells and the first demonstration screened only 24 designed variants.

Biomanufacturing•Aug 18, 2026

Scientists Found Animals Have Been Eating Nature's Original Bioplastic

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute found that more than 66 animal species, from marine worms to earthworms and sponges, carry enzymes capable of breaking down a microbial bioplastic called PHA, once thought digestible only by microorganisms. The discovery opens a new route for understanding nature's carbon cycle, with practical relevance for the growing bioplastics industry.

Biomanufacturing•Aug 11, 2026

Scientists Grow 3D Human Heart-Valve Tissue, but It Is Not an Implant Yet

Researchers have grown a three-dimensional human heart-valve tissue model from pluripotent stem cells. It could improve disease research and drug testing, especially where animal models fall short, but it has not functioned as an implanted valve and still faces major mechanical and manufacturing tests.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 25, 2026

Scientists Made Transparent Silk Gel That Lets Them Watch Living Cells Grow

Researchers improved a recombinant spider-silk hydrogel so it gels faster, remains clearer and supports cultured cells under more physiological conditions. Better transparency could help scientists image cells inside three-dimensional cultures, although the work remains an in-vitro materials study rather than a treatment or implant.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 24, 2026

AI Designed 391 Plant Immune Systems. Only 71 Worked, and That Is Still a Breakthrough

Researchers used AI and directed evolution to build programmable plant immune receptors against viruses, bacteria, fungi and other pathogens. Seventy-one of 391 initial designs worked as intended, and an improved receptor protected experimental plants, but field performance remains unknown.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 23, 2026

Scientists Turned Living Bacteria Into a Stretchable Force Sensor

Researchers engineered bacteria to assemble into a conductive network that senses force while tolerating extreme stretching. The laboratory prototype could inspire softer sensors for robots and wearables, but its long-term stability, containment, manufacturing cost and real-world accuracy have not yet been demonstrated.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 21, 2026

Scientists Taught Enzymes to Make a Major Plastic Building Block From Methanol

An engineered enzyme cascade converted methanol into acrylic acid with 99.5% conversion in the reported laboratory system. It is a clever route away from conventional petrochemistry, but its climate value depends on scale, energy and the source of the methanol.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 20, 2026

Scientists Grew Dog Blood Cells in the Lab. They Are Not Ready for Transfusions Yet

Researchers used canine iPS cells and CRISPR to generate hemoglobin-containing red-blood-cell-like cells and watch them develop. More than 96% expressed a key marker, but only about 3% lost their nuclei, so this is a research platform rather than artificial blood.

Biomanufacturing•Jul 15, 2026

Scientists Want to Turn Ordinary Grass Into Car Parts, Packaging and an Entire New Industry

A newly funded U.S. initiative plans to grow perennial grasses on underused farmland, break the plants into useful chemical building blocks and manufacture products for cars, buildings and packaging. BRIDGES has received an initial $15 million and could receive up to $160 million—but its promised industrial scale and economic impact remain targets, not proven outcomes.