Tunable light-focusing behavior of engineered bacterial microlenses with controllable shapes
Year: 2025
Type: preprint
Abstract: Recently, engineered bacterial cells have been shown to behave as optically-active photonic devices comparable to industrially fabricated microlenses 1 . Bacterial cells can be encapsulated within a layer of polysilicate through surface display of the sea sponge enzyme silicatein, which mineralizes a polysilicate coating. The addition of this polysilicate layer significantly enhances the ability of these cells to guide, scatter, and focus light 1 . However, this previous technique was limited to creating rod-shaped microlenses, which are not ideal for all applications. Here we expand upon this technology by engineering the shapes of silicatein-displaying bacterial cells. Through the overexpression of the genes bolA 2–5 and sulA 6,7 or through the use of the drug A22 8,9 , we are able to alter Escherichia coli cells from their characteristic rod-like shape to either spherical or filamentous forms. Round cells encapsulated in polysilicate were shown to scatter light more intensely and symmetrically than rod-shaped cells, while encapsulated filamentous cells were shown to guide light similarly to an optical fiber. This control over the size and shape of optically-active cells is a major advancement towards developing bio-engineered photonic devices such as nanophotonic waveguides, spherical microlens arrays, and advanced biosensors.
Authors: Lynn M. Sidor, Kathren P. Sage, Michelle M. Beaulieu, Dylan F. Wilson, Emerson Jenen, B. Cansu Acarturk, Wil V. Srubar, Greg R. Schmidt, Elio A. Abbondanzieri, Anne S. Meyer
Language: English
Topic: Diatoms and Algae Research
Subfield: Biomaterials
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4417455773