
Introducing Amino: Desktop Bioengineering for Everyone - jimsojim
http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/introducing-amino-desktop-bioengineering-for-everyone
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_Adam
I love the concept, but I want more details regarding the process I would use
to modify my pet bacteria's DNA.

To me the ideal biolab is: digital genome data in, organism(s) out.

I know this isn't promising that, but I want to understand how close it is to
full DNA synthesis.

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bitshiffed
Amino only covers the next step; growing your bacteria. The kit comes with a
single, "living nightlight", sample that you can grow. They also plan to offer
additional samples ("Apps"...) that you can buy. As far as tinkering, it
sounds like the only intended modification is to the growth liquid: grow in
water vs grow in liquid-X.

The company they're working with, Synbiota, does have a "DNA Tinker Studio"
kit that looks interesting. It's not full synthesis either though. It contains
specific set of available 'parts' to work with, that you combine and get
existing bacteria to take up.

There are services, not difficult to find, that offer actual digital->DNA
synthesis. Current state, they are expensive, and are focused-on/able-to
create only relatively short sequences. Sequence->Modify->Synthesize->Grow, or
even targeted splicing, aren't really available things yet, AFAIK.

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rdrey
My fantasy is probably limited by not being a biologist, but I'd need some
more examples of what cultures I could grow with this.

> Apps will be priced between $150 and $400, depending on the DNA program and
> number of components.

That seems a little steep to switch cultures in the future.

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jpahara2
One of the nice things about bacteria/yeast is that once you've booted up your
app, you can collect a sample, store it, and then re-grow it in the future. As
long as you have growth media, an app could result in a lifetime of joy.

More info and some examples of what people are programming cells to do:
[https://goo.gl/lfweYy](https://goo.gl/lfweYy)

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dekhn
That's quite slick. Love the series of prototypes in the thesis.

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SRSposter
I chuckled a bit when i misread it as Animo.

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vermilingua
Anyone up for some anthrax?

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dang
Please don't post dismissive comments to HN, especially in response to new
work.

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TeMPOraL
That's probably one of the worst ways of phrasing that, but they have a point.

I'm in love with biohacking and trying to start a biohackerspace myself in my
city, but if we're reaching the level of actually making modifications to
organisms at home, we _really_ need to have a serious talk about it. Life is
not a toy, it's self-replicating nanotech that's literally capable of killing
people at scale.

