First step taken toward artificial plant genome. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38301003/)

These scientists wanted to make a special kind of moss that could be really useful for different industries. So, what they did was they made a partially synthetic version of a moss chromosome. Now, a chromosome is like a tiny instruction manual that tells a living thing how to grow and function.

To make this synthetic chromosome, the scientists took a real moss chromosome and made some changes to it in a lab. They added some new instructions to make the moss more useful for industry. It's kind of like adding new features to a toy to make it more fun to play with.

The scientists hope that this special moss can be used to make things like medicines or chemicals that we need. They think that by changing the instructions in the moss's chromosome, they can make it produce these useful things more easily. It's like teaching the moss a new trick!

So, by making this partially synthetic moss chromosome, the scientists are trying to create a new kind of moss that can help us in different industries. They are using their knowledge and skills to make this happen.

Leslie M. First step taken toward artificial plant genome. Science. 2024 Feb 2;383(6682):471. doi: 10.1126/science.ado3860. Epub 2024 Feb 1.