The exciting field of Synthetic Biology focuses on producing engineered, predictable cells or other biological systems to carry out desired functions, whereby these functions can be modified, enhanced or entirely new. Conceptually, Synthetic Biology relies on breaking down the complexity of biological systems into smaller subsystems and functional modules, followed by (re-)designing and (re-)assembling them into larger units. This can be considered as an analogue to the design of a biotechnological or chemical plant (Rollié et al., 2012). With respect to this, the PSE Group, in collaboration with EEC Group of Dr. Tanja Vidaković-Koch, has introduced its expertise in the assembly and control of chemical, energy and production processes in MaxSynBio– a research consortium with eight other Max Planck Institutes and research groups from the Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen-Nuremberg and the University of Bordeaux, which is jointly funded by the Max Planck Society and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in Germany.
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