Description

In the post-pandemic era, people's focus on personal health has intensified significantly. At the same time, mental health issues have become increasingly prominent in the fast-paced environment of modern life. According to research from the Mental Health section of the World Health Organization (WHO) website, rates of anxiety, depression, and stress have surged dramatically worldwide. We have observed that, particularly in China, societal and individual pressures — often referred to as the phenomenon of "neijuan" or excessive competition — have severely impacted people's mental well-being. In this context, it has become clear that there is a need for innovative approaches to alleviate these mental health challenges. Petalglow, a glowing plant companion, was designed to offer a unique and holistic approach to mental well-being. At daytime, Petalglow incorporates the therapeutic benefits of horticultural therapy. It arrives as a young plant, ready to grow under your care. Daily tasks like watering and caring for Petalglow's growth create a mindful routine that alleviates mild anxiety and stress, promotes relaxation, and enhances mood [1]. As night falls, Petalglow takes its therapeutic effects a step further by emitting a soft, calming bioluminescent light that creates an ideal pre-sleep environment. Unlike harsh night lights, Petalglow's subtle glow provides just enough illumination to ease people into a restful state without disrupting the darkness needed for sleep.

To achieve the soothing light effect, we needed to enhance the brightness beyond what was possible with earlier fungal bioluminescence pathways (FBP) used in transgenic tobacco plants, where the light emitted was often too dim to be noticed. This challenge led us to explore innovative solutions to create a more visibly luminous plant. Through a comprehensive review of existing scientific literature, we identified several key genes with the potential to significantly boost the bioluminescence intensity.

1. Gene Selection and Optimization:

We chose the TAL (Tyrosine Ammonia-Lyase) and C3H (p-Coumarate 3-Hydroxylase) genes, which have been shown to enhance caffeic acid production in saccharomyces cerevisiae [2][3]. TAL and C3H increases the concentractions of caffeic acid, thereby boost the original FBP to increase the overall light intensity of our enginerred plant.

2. Construction of the Gene Expression System:

After selecting the TAL and C3H genes for their ability to enhance caffeic acid production, the next step was to ensure their effective expression in plant cells. To achieve this, we used transient expression technology in plant leaves to construct overexpression plasmids containing these target genes. Additionally, we utilized JCat, a codon optimization tool, to refine the non-plant-derived gene sequences, ensuring higher expression efficiency in plant cells [4]. This optimization is crucial for maximizing the impact of the selected genes on the bioluminescence pathway.

3. Enhancement of the Bioluminescent System:

Building on the optimized expression of our selected genes, we further enhanced the plant's bioluminescent properties by introducing and optimizing genes involved in the synthesis of luciferin substrates [5][6]. This strategic modification significantly increased the amount of light emitted by the plant at night, creating an environment that is conducive to relaxation and sleep.

4. Development of an Environmental Sensing Module:

In parallel, we developed a regulatory module capable of responding to environmental signals, such as detecting formaldehyde levels [8]. This module allows the plant to adjust its bioluminescence properties dynamically based on changes in the surrounding environment. By enabling the plant to react to external stimuli, this innovation lays a solid foundation for creating future interactive bioluminescent plant companions that can engage more intuitively with human users.

Through this series of technological approaches, we successfully achieved the following outcomes:

1. Development of a Novel Bioluminescent Plant:

Petalglow, a new type of bioluminescent plant and plant companion, not only offers the benefits of horticultural therapy during the day but also emits a soft glow at night to help users relax and improve pre-sleeping envrionemnt.

2. Provision of a Support Tool for Mental Health:

As a natural therapy tool, PetalGlow provides new possibilities for alleviating anxiety and stress, as well as improving sleep quality.

3. Establishment of an Environmentally Responsive Plant Expression System:

Our engineered plant can adjust its bioluminescence based on environmental signals, demonstrating the potential of synthetic biology in environmental sensing and responsiveness.

4. Education and Community Engagement:

Through educational activities and community involvement, we have raised public awareness about synthetic biology and mental health issues with Petalglow, inspiring young people to take an interest in these fields.

The Petalglow project saw the potential of synthetic biology in addressing real-world challenges. Through innovative genetic engineering and environmental sensing technologies, we have not only created a plant with therapeutic potential but also paved the way for new applications of synthetic biology. We hope that Petalglow will bring a positive impact to the field of mental health worldwide.

[1] Lu, S., Liu, J., Xu, M., & Xu, F. (2023). Horticultural therapy for stress reduction: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, Article 10411738.

[2] Lanqing Liu, Hong Liu, Wei Zhang, Mingdong Yao, Bingzhi Li, Duo Liu, Yingjin Yuan*. Engineering the Biosynthesis of Caffeic Acid in Saccharomyces cerevisiae with Heterologous Enzyme Combinations, Engineering, Volume 5, Issue 2, 2019, Pages 287-295.

[3] Lingling Li, Xue Liu, Zetian Qiu, Guangrong Zhao. Microbial synthesis of plant polyphenols. Chinese Journal of Biotechnology, 2021, 37(6): 2050-2076.

[4] JCat: A novel tool to adapt codon usage of a target gene to its potential expression host.

[5] Peng Zheng, Jieyu Ge, Jiayi Ji, Jingling Zhong, Hongyu Chen, Daren Luo, Wei Li, Bo Bi, Yongjun Ma, Wanghui Tong, Leiqin Han, Siqi Ma, Yuqi Zhang, Jianping Wu, Yanqiu Zhao, Ronghui Pan, Pengxiang Fan, Mengzhu Lu, Hao Du*. Metabolic engineering and mechanical investigation of enhanced plant autoluminescence. Plant Biotechnol J, 2023 Aug;21(8):1671-1681.

[6] Jieyu Ge, Xuye Lang, Jiayi Ji, Chengyi Qu, He Qiao, Jingling Zhong, Daren Luo, Jin Hu, Hongyu Chen, Shun Wang, Tiange Wang, Shiquan Li, Wei Li, Jiming Xu, Hao Du*. Optimization of fungal bioluminescence pathway for creating enhanced plant autoluminescence. Plant Cell, 2024.

[7] Zhao X, Yang X, Li Y, Nian H, Li K. 14-3-3 proteins regulate the HCHO stress response by interacting with AtMDH1 and AtGS1 in tobacco and Arabidopsis. J Hazard Mater. 2023 Sep 15;458:132036. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132036. Epub 2023 Jul 10. PMID: 37453350.