Co-developing materials in the metamorphic zone: extending bacteriocentricity

Moreira, Tiago; Staykova, Margarita

Abstract

Engineered living materials (ELM) are composite technologies that respond to environmental cues, are able to remodel, self-organise and self-heal. Proposed as a fusion of synthetic biology and classical materials science, ELMs are seen as having the potential to transform domains such as healthcare or transport infrastructure, and to underpin future circular bio-economies. In this paper, drawing on work that explores the pragmatic dimensions of developing new biomaterials in collaboration with microorganisms themselves, we focus on how our interdisciplinary research team responded to the surprising behaviour deployed by encapsulated bacteria in the biofactory system we designed. We suggest that - and describe how - this surprise prompted us to to think like bacteria – to become bacteriocentric - and how this enables the deployment of this mode of practice in the building of ELMs. We propose that this alternation between surprise and control is essential to technological development in ELMs, and to our interdisciplinary collaboration

Citation

Moreira, T., & Staykova, M. (online). Co-developing materials in the metamorphic zone: extending bacteriocentricity. Science, Technology, & Human Values, https://doi.org/10.1177/01622439241296898

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 8, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Nov 21, 2024
• Deposit Date: Oct 17, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 18, 2024
• Journal: Science, Technology, & Human Values
• Print ISSN: 0162-2439
• Electronic ISSN: 1552-8251
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/01622439241296898
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2961084