Stanford Bioengineering Assistant Professor Drew Endy, Honored by White House

ORIGINAL: Stanford
Jamie Beckett | Stanford Engineering
June 17, 2013

Drew Endy named an Open Science Champion of Change.
Drew Endy, a synthetic biologist and assistant professor of bioengineering, has been honored by the White House as part of its Champions of Change Open Science program, which recognizes those who promote and use “open scientific data and publications to accelerate progress and improve our world.”

Endy is known for his support of free access to genetic information and use of genetic materials. He has been one of the early promoters of open source biology and helped start the BioBricks Foundation, a public benefit organization, to advance biotechnology to benefit all people and the planet.

"Open sharing of research results is a proven strategy for driving scientific change," the White House said in a statement. "For example, the rapid and open sharing of genomic data from the Human Genome Project revolutionized biomedical research, and spurred major growth in the biotechnology industry."

The White House Champions of Change program highlights individuals, businesses, and organizations whose extraordinary stories and accomplishments positively impact our communities.

Drew Endy. Photo: Stanford

Drew Endy, an assistant profesor of bioengineering at Stanford, is being honored by the White House for his support of free access to genetic information and use of genetic materials. (Stanford Engineering)
"Over the past decade, Endy has provided early leadership and support for many open biotechnology programs," the White House said in a release announcing the awards. The programs include  

• iGEM.org, a competition enabling over 10,000 students to explore biotechnology, 
• OpenWetWare.org, a resource for sharing lab methods and results used by thousands of researchers, and  
• BIOFAB.org, a public-domain factory for engineering high-quality standard biological parts.

At Stanford, Endy’s research has been focused on enabling the engineering of genetically encoded memory, logic, and communication systems. Most recently, his team developed a transistor-like switch made from genetic material — DNA and RNA — in place of gears or electrons.

This so-called “transcriptor” allowed engineers to compute inside living cells to record, for instance, when cells have been exposed to certain external stimuli or environmental factors, or even to turn on and off cell reproduction as needed. The team contributed its genetic logic to the public domain so that others can use it freely.