In synthetic ecology, a nascent offshoot of synthetic biology, scientists aim to design and
construct microbial communities with desirable properties. Such mixed populations of …

Cooperation between cells is one of evolution's fundamental innovations. It allows cells to
specialize: Different members of a consortium assume different responsibilities, increasing …

The metabolic capabilities of microbes are the basis for many major biotechnological
advances, exploiting microbial diversity by selection or engineering of single strains …

The metabolic diversity present in microbial communities enables cooperation toward
accomplishing more complex tasks than possible by a single organism. Members of a …

Synthetic biology: Living quarters | Nature Skip to main content Thank you for visiting nature.com.
You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience …

Brenner et al.[1] explore the rich potential that synthetic biology offers for engineering
microbial consortia. The authors acknowledge that many problems emerge when applying …

Many microbial ecologists have described the composition of microbial communities in a
plenitude of environments, which has greatly improved our basic understanding of …

Microbial consortia have been used in biotechnology processes, including fermentation,
waste treatment, and agriculture, for millennia. Today, synthetic biologists are increasingly …

Microbial consortia are ubiquitous in nature and are implicated in processes of great
importance to humans, from environmental remediation and wastewater treatment to …

Natural ecosystems harbor a huge reservoir of taxonomically diverse microbes that are
important for plant growth and health. The vast diversity of soil microorganisms and their …