via NPRs Morning edition with a super easy to understand graphic
His switch, which he calls a "transcriptor," is a piece of DNA that he can flip on and off, using chemicals called enzymes. Endy put several of these DNA switches inside his bacteria. He could use the switches to build logic circuits that program each cell's behavior. For example, he could tell a cell to change color in the presence of both enzyme A and enzyme B. That's a simple program: IF enzyme A AND enzyme B [are present] THEN turn green. For an in-depth look, checkout Endy's explanation on youtube
Timothy Lu a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is also building cellular computers. He can see lots of ways they could be used. For example, you could program cells to automatically scan your bowels for chemical signals of cancer and let you know if they find any.
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