U.S. researchers say bacteria "addicted" to caffeine could be used in areas from decontamination of wastewater to bioproduction of medications. Caffeine and related chemical compounds have become significant water pollutants due to widespread use in coffee, soft drinks, tea, energy drinks, chocolate and certain medications, they said, and a bacterium that could live solely on caffeine could be used to clean up such environmental contamination. So Jeffrey E. Barrick of the University of Texas at Austin and colleagues set out to genetically engineer just such a bacterium. Scientists have known a natural soil bacterium, Pseudomonas putida CBB5, can survive just on caffeine, so Barrick's team set out to transfer it genetic ability to metabolize caffeine into E. coli, a biotechnology workhorse that is easy to handle and grow. The result was bacteria literally addicted to caffeine, the researchers said, which could have applications beyond environmental remediation. It could also find use as a sensor to measure caffeine levels in beverages, in recovery of nutrient-rich byproducts of coffee processing and for the cost-effective bioproduction of medicines, they said. Their study was published in the American Chemical Society's journal ACS Synthetic Biology.
GMT 13:29 2018 Monday ,01 January
Serbia launches probe after toxic waste dumped near BelgradeGMT 19:03 2017 Thursday ,28 December
Pregnant elephant 'poisoned' in Indonesian palm plantationGMT 16:26 2017 Sunday ,24 December
Nepal's two last known dancing bears rescued: officialsGMT 10:51 2017 Sunday ,24 December
Florida orange industry hit by hurricane, diseaseGMT 09:09 2017 Sunday ,24 December
Modern-day amber 'Klondikes' thrive in troubled UkraineGMT 19:23 2017 Saturday ,23 December
Indonesian pangolin faces extinction due to traffickingGMT 11:37 2017 Friday ,22 December
Global warming may boost asylum-seekers in Europe: studyGMT 07:32 2017 Friday ,22 December
Modern-day Mowgli: Indian toddler forges bond with monkeys
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor