Abstract
A method for encrypting messages using engineered bacteria and different fluorescently labeled synthetic receptors is described. We show that the binding of DNA-based artificial receptors to E. coli expressing His-tagged outer membrane protein C (His-OmpC) induces a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between the dyes, which results in the generation of a unique fluorescence fingerprint. Because the bacteria continuously divide, the emission pattern generated by the modified bacteria dynamically changes, enabling the system to produce encryption keys that change with time. Thus, this development indicates the potential contribution of live-cell-based encryption systems to the emerging area of information protection at the molecular level.
Highlights
In living cells, information is processed and transferred via a series of recognition and signaling events, which normally begin by the binding of cell-surface receptors to extracellular signals, such as small molecules or proteins
We hypothesized that incubating the bacteria with a mixture of three artificial receptors, each of which is appended with a distinct dye, should lead to a mixed labeling of each bacterium and to the generation of unique optical signatures owing to the Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between the dyes (Figure 3A, step 1)
We have shown how bacteria decorated with self-assembled synthetic receptors can be used to cipher and decipher messages
Summary
Information is processed and transferred via a series of recognition and signaling events, which normally begin by the binding of cell-surface receptors to extracellular signals, such as small molecules or proteins. We present the design and function of a pattern-generating system based on living cells, and demonstrate how it can be used to encrypt and decrypt secret messages in a time-dependent manner. To generate encryption keys that change with time, we combined our expertise in modifying bacteria with synthetic receptors [2] and in message encryption using pattern-generating probes [5].
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