PubMed · 2026-06-06
Scientists are looking to bacteria, fungi, and insects for inspiration on how to rewire plant chemistry without genetic engineering. These organisms have evolved clever ways to hijack or reshape plant metabolism, and understanding their tricks could open entirely new toolkits for producing medicines, materials, and fuels from plants.
Bacteria, fungi, and insects have independently evolved sophisticated mechanisms to redirect plant metabolism for their own nutritional and structural needs.
Current synthetic biology is heavily reliant on genetic engineering, but non-genetic routes to manipulating plant metabolism remain largely unexplored.
Studying interspecies interactions in non-model plant systems could reveal entirely new blueprints for engineering valuable compounds and materials from plants.