
We leverage the latest advances in Synthetic Biology, Biochemistry, and Chemistry to understand and engineer complex systems.
1. Genetic Design Optimization
Living organisms build the most complex and useful chemicals known to man. We use novel engineering strategies to re-write the genetics of natural product biosynthesis. We apply this to discover and over-produce molecules from nature that have applications as drugs, pesticides, and herbicides.
2. Engineered Speciation
Species boundaries are defined by pre-zygotic and post-zygotic barriers to genetic exchange. By engineering such barriers, we can essentially create ‘new’ species. We apply this technology to limit the gene flow between populations and as a mechanism to control or eradicate pest organisms. Synthetic species can also be used as drivers of evolution in competitive co-cultures.
3. Complex Systems Engineering
Since the advent of recombinant DNA technology in the early 1970’s, most biotechnology applications are comprised of relatively simple, single-gene systems. We are leveraging advances in algorithmic DNA assembly to design, build, and test large, multi-gene systems with applications in medicine, agriculture, and the environment.
Recent Publications
1. Engineering Biology Research Consortium (2024). Engineering Biology for Space Health: An Innovative Research Roadmap. Retrieved from http://roadmap.ebrc.org. doi: 10.25498/E4D59R
2. Haynes K, Andrews L, Beisel C, Chappell J, Cuba Samaniego C, Dueber J, Dunlop M, Franco E, Lucks J, Noireaux V, Savage D, Silver P, Smanski MJ, Young E. (2024) Ten years of the Synthetic Biology Summer Course at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. ACS Synthetic Biology. https://doi.org/10.1021/acssynbio.4c00276
3. Zinselmeier MH, Casas-Mollano JA, Cors J, Sychla A, Heinsch SC, Voytas DF, Smanski MJ (2024) Optimized dCas9 Programmable Transcriptional Activators for Plants. Plant Biotechnology. https://doi.org/10.1111/pbi.14441
4. Sychla A, Stach CS, Roach SN, Hayward AN, Langlois RA, Smanski MJ (2024) High-throughput investigation of genetic design constraints in domesticated Influenza A Virus for transient gene delivery. In revision Preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.02.14.580300
5. Moon S, Saboe A, Smanski MJ (2024) Using design of experiments to guide genetic optimization of engineered metabolic pathways J Industr Microb Biotech Volume 51, https://doi.org/10.1093/jimb/kuae010
6. Janzen A, Pothula R, Sychla A, Feltman NR, Smanski MJ (2024) Predicting thresholds for population replacement gene drives. BMC Biol 22, 40 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-024-01823-2
7. Casas-Mollano JA, Zinselmeier MH, Sychla A, Smanski MJ (2023) Efficient gene activation in plants by the MoonTag programmable transcription activator. Nucleic Acids Research https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkad458
8. Hsu SH, Lee J, Sychla A, Smanski MJ (2023) Rational search of genetic design space for a heterologous terpene metabolic pathway in Streptomyces. Metabolic Engineering https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymben.2023.02.011
9. Erickson SE, Lhewa P, Rundquist K, Schultz S, Levers L, Smanski MJ (2023) Perceptions on the genetic biocontrol of invasive carp. Bioarchive. doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.07.27.550879
10. Sychla A, Feltman NR, Hutchison WD, Smanski MJ (2022) Modeling-informed Engineered Genetic Incompatibility strategies to overcome resistance in the invasive Drosophila suzukii. Frontiers in Insect Science doi:10.3389/finsc.2022.1063789
Group Members
Past Members
Thomas Hougard, Medical School, UMN
Duncan Mincks, Law Student, Hamline University
Madeline Nicol, Manufacturing Associate, Takeda
Basem Al-Shayeb, Founder, Amber Bio
Duc Hoang, Graduate Student
Dakota Snustad, Medical School, UND
Aleksandra Bajer, Medical School, UMN
Jack Dalluge, Lab Technician, University of Utah
Ambuj Upadhyay, Senior Specialist I, Beam Therapeutics
Nicholas Jacob, Joint Masters program, University of Göttingen (Germany) and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (Norway)
Adam Sychla, Postdoctoral Scholar at Harvard Medical School
Anna Saboe, Research and Development Scientist at Bimeda
Dimitri Perusse, Scientist at NovoClade
Anna Janzen, Fulbright Scholar, Taiwan
Jonah Hinks, Pharmacy Technician, West Seventh Pharmacy
Nathan Myslicki, Molecular Technologist NGS, Tempus AI
Bennett Auers, Entrepreneur
Mia Deaven, Chemist, Sherwin-Williams
Greg Shobert, Officer Candidate, US Coast Guard
Alec Vallota-Eastman, Scientist II, NASA Ames Research Center
Sabina Kim, Student
Maciej Maselko, Associate Professor, Macquarie University
Edward Large, Research Scientist University of Missouri
Mariela Rivera-DeJesus, Graduate Student, Cornell University
Christopher Stach, Mammalian Synthetic Biologist, Asimov
Jesse Gates, Medical School, Sanford
Siba Das, CEO at NovoClade
Suzie Hsu, Scientist at Beckman Coulter
Matthew Zinselmeier, Scientist at Corteva
Sam Erickson, Doctoral candidate, University of Minnesota
Sarah Jo Devore, Data Scientist at Recursion
Stephen Heinsch, Bioinformatics Scientist at Jord BioScience
Juan Armando Casas-Mollano, Genome Modification Post-Doctorate Scientist at Bayer
Matthew Fossing, BioProcess Engineer III, Bristol Myers Squibb
Pema Llewa, Communicable Disease Investigator, Jackson Cty, OR
Chengyuan (Wesley) Wu, Doctoral candidate, Rice University
Kate Phillips, Scientist, Jord Bioscience
Isabel Ameli, Manufacturing Scientist, Takeda
Come work with us!
We are part of the Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics (BMBB) Graduate Program at the University of Minnesota. We are looking for postdocs, students, and scientists in bioinformatics and computational biology, microbiology, chemical engineering, and related areas. Please send the following information to the address given below:
Cover letter, including research and career interests
CV
Preprints of publications listed on your CV but not published
Letter of recommendation from your most recent advisor
Mike Smanski: smanski@umn.edu
Smanski Lab Advising Statement
Smanski Lab
Mail:
1479 Gortner Ave Room 140
St Paul, MN, 55108
Visit:
Gortner Laboratory Room 344 1479 Gortner Ave
St Paul, MN, 55108