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We designed a system that allows controlling the expression of a gene or an operon over a specific temperature interval (between 32 and 42 degrees Celsius). This system consists of an RNA thermometer controlling the translation of a thermosensitive transcriptional repressor, which itself controls the expression of the targeted gene or operon. In our current construction, the crtEBI operon directing lycopene biosynthesis is used as a reporter, allowing us to check our system's performance.
However, the possible applications of this system are extremely numerous. For example, controlling the expression of a toxin would allow creating a “suicidal bacterium” that would bring on its own death outside the specified temperature range. This will help preventing its spread in the environment.
And this is just one example... The only limit is our imagination !

The GEMOTE Project:

At first, the idea was to create a nail polisher that could change color along with the temperature. But we soon understood this idea could have unwanted secondary effects, as fingers often come in contact with their owner's face and mouth. We cannot anticipate the result of the ingestion of organisms we would have created. We therefore decided to modify the bacteria so that they would change color if the experiment’s environment was out of norms. These bacteria would let us see if the temperature stayed within the right range. But on the long run, they could be modified to have effects other than changing color. For example, a bacterium could produce toxins which would cause its own death if the experimental conditions were not enforced. This could slow down or even completely halt the spread of the bacteria if they were accidentally released.