Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 7, 2026
08:17
Free-form Light Actuators — Fabrication and Control of Actuation in Microscopic Scale
Published on: May 25, 2016
9.6K
Tunable light-focusing behavior of engineered bacterial microlenses with controllable shapes
Lynn M Sidor1, Kathren P Sage1, Michelle M Beaulieu2
1Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, 14627, USA.
Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|December 25, 2025
Summary
Researchers engineered bacterial cells into new shapes, creating advanced bio-photonic devices. These modified bacterial microlenses offer enhanced light manipulation for applications in biosensors and optical fibers.
Area of Science:
- Biophotonics
- Materials Science
- Microbiology
Background:
- Engineered bacterial cells can function as optically-active photonic devices.
- A polysilicate coating enhances light manipulation capabilities of bacterial cells.
- Previous methods were limited to rod-shaped bacterial microlenses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To engineer bacterial cell shapes for improved photonic device applications.
- To expand the capabilities of bio-engineered photonic devices beyond rod-shaped microlenses.
Main Methods:
- Overexpression of bolA and sulA genes in Escherichia coli.
- Treatment of Escherichia coli with the drug A22 to alter cell morphology.
- Encapsulation of engineered bacterial cells in a polysilicate layer using silicatein.
Main Results:
- Bacterial cells were successfully engineered into spherical and filamentous shapes.
- Polysilicate-encapsulated spherical cells exhibited enhanced and symmetrical light scattering.
- Polysilicate-encapsulated filamentous cells demonstrated optical fiber-like light guiding properties.
Conclusions:
- Control over bacterial cell size and shape is achievable.
- Engineered bacterial cells offer a versatile platform for developing novel bio-photonic devices.
- This advancement paves the way for nanophotonic waveguides, spherical microlens arrays, and advanced biosensors.
