Phytodetectors Inc is strucrured around the Synthetic Biology of Plants as a component in building a sustainable future. Multiple synthetic biology applications: Photosynthetic Desalination, Extreme Salt Tolerance, and Plants that detect substances. An interesting article about one the firm's founders discussing how passing through airport security could be as pleasant as a stroll through a park. Principlals of Phytodetector are organized around harnessng the innate sensing abilities of plants, genetically engineering them to become bomb-and-drug detecting machines - in effect, re-designing natural biological systems in attempt to find new useful purposes. By internet-connecting engineered plants to electronic webcams, the plantscan detect color changes before they're perceptible to the human eye, and signaling an alarm. Anchored in the fact that the natural sensors in plants can be over 100 times more receptive than a dog's, on 2003 one of the priciipals of Phytodetector Inc worked with DARPA - that part of DDO responsible for developing new technologies for military use by the military - reprogrammed plants in her lab to serve as security sentinels. Later, Phytodetectors, Inc. was established to pioneer commercialization of plant synthetic biology. A plant genus known as Arabidopsiswas programmed to change color when TNT or certain pollutants were detected. Colleagues worked on engineering other plants to alert farmers when certain pathogens are present in crops. Appropriatel modified, synthetic biology components [genes] could be made to function predictably in different synthetic circuits and plants with the notable advantage of sustainability - while materials used today's electronics and sensors are made from and powered by fossil fuels. Growing a new plant sentinel simply requires new seeds, water and sunlight.
