GreenLab, an emerging next-generation plant biotechnology company that produces complex proteins from corn, announced on December 19, 2023 that it is developing a product designed to degrade PFAS and will utilize Ginkgo Bioengineering's Bioworks (NYSE: DNA) Ginkgo Enzyme Services to produce a novel enzyme to degrade this "permanent chemical". Services of Bioworks (NYSE: DNA), a ginkgo bioengineering company, to produce a new enzyme to degrade this "permanent chemical".
Creating a corn cell factory
GreenLab's patented technology allows the company to cultivate enzymes and other proteins in corn kernels. By producing proteins in cultivated crops, GreenLab can easily scale up yields in cornfields with little additional upfront capital and infrastructure. After the protein of interest is extracted from the kernel with minimal waste, most of the corn used will move along the existing value chain, including food, feed, or fuel.GreenLab already has two transformed proteins in commercial production, including manganese peroxidase (an all-purpose environmental remediation solution) and brazzein (which delivers a high-intensity sweet flavor).
First commercialized novel enzyme to degrade PFAS
PFAS stands for "perfluorinated and polyfluoroalkyl substances" and describes a group of man-made chemicals that have been commonly used for decades in non-stick and water repellents. Due to their persistence and inability to break down in the environment, they are known as "persistent chemicals". They are associated with many dangerous health effects including cancer, reproductive and immune system damage and other diseases.
There is no known commercial process for degrading these permanent chemicals, but GreenLab is working to change that and reverse their permanent environmental accumulation.PFAS degradation is a very complex problem, and there are no commercial PFAS-degrading enzymes available. GreenLab's goal is to utilize the Ginkgo Enzyme Service to discover and develop novel enzymes for PFAS degradation applications. This project is the first step in a journey that could be the first solution for a commercially viable enzyme solution that can degrade one of the most difficult chemicals in existence.
In collaboration with Ginkgo, GreenLab plans to use Ginkgo Enzyme Services to design novel enzymes to degrade PFAS and to modify and reverse the permanent buildup of PFAS. Ginkgo Bioworks, for its part, is leading the macro-genome discovery effort, identifying libraries of PFAS-degrading enzymes using its macro-genome database, and then identifying unique enzymes with the desired activity using ultra-high-throughput screening methods and delivering the best candidate enzymes to GreenLab. For its part, Ginkgo Bioworks is leading the macrogenomic discovery effort, using its macrogenomic database to identify a library of PFAS-degrading enzymes, then utilizing ultra-high-throughput screening methods to identify unique enzymes with the desired activity and delivering the best candidates to GreenLab.
In later stages of the collaboration, Ginkgo will be further involved in AI-based enzyme engineering efforts and will continue to improve the candidate enzymes that have been identified. Next, the Ginkgo-led team was awarded a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) to fund the construction of solutions to protect algae crops. The award-winning program is part of DOE's investment in developing clean energy solutions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
