In this issue: Biotechnology Journal 10/2009

Synthetic biology – computational methods Kaznessis et al., Biotechnol. J. 2009, 4, 1392–1405 Professor Yiannis Kaznessis from Minnesota (MN, USA) discusses how theoretical synthetic biology may liberate empiricism in biological sciences beyond the unaided human brain. Because synthetic biological systems are relatively small and largely independent of evolutionary contexts, they can be represented with mathematical models strongly founded on first principles of molecular biology and laws of statistical thermodynamics. This may then be plausibly used to explain in unambiguous, quantitative terms how biological phenotypic complexity emerges as a result of well‐defined biomolecular interactions. He presents SynBioSS, a publicly available software package which implements this mathematical formalism. Synthetic biology – practical applications Marner , Biotechnol. J. 2009, 4, 1406–1419 Successful design of new biological paradigms requires integration of many scientific disciplines including (but not limited to) protein engineering, metabolic engineering, genomics, structural biology, chemical biology, systems biology, and bioinformatics. At the human level, it is therefore necessary to integrate all of these expertise, by building multi‐disciplinary teams that place as much emphasis on discovery as on rational design. This review by Wesley Marner from Madison (WI, USA) focuses on recent applications of synthetic biology principles in three areas: (i) the construction of artificial biomolecules and biomaterials; (ii) the synthesis of both fine and bulk chemicals (including biofuels); and (iii) the construction of "smart" biological systems that respond to the surrounding environment. Synthetic biology – biocatalysis Zhu and Hua , Biotechnol. J. 2009, 4, 1420–1431 Researchers from China describe chiral amines that are widely desired in the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries and whose syntheses may one day be achieved economically through the tools of synthetic biology. The distinct features and synthetic application of two enzymes are reviewed in an effort to illustrate their promising and challenging aspects in serving as approaches to the direct asymmetric synthesis of optically pure amines from the corresponding keto compounds, a formidable problem in organic chemistry.