10 Most Important Scientific Discoveries Of 2019

If you live in the United States and recall a time when you were warned to stay away from lettuce, you're aware of the bacteria known as E. coli. Despite the dangerous nature of this bacteria, it represents one that is easily used in laboratory studies, and recently, in one that succeeded in creating a form of artificial life.

In a milestone effort, researchers injected synthetic information into the DNA of E. coli, which found a way to reproduce. The introduced information was created synthetically by scientists and is not found in nature, but after introducing it into the organism, it managed to divide and reproduce, carrying the new information into the offspring.

The actual methods used and the information describing the achievement is a little hard to follow, but basically, researchers managed to reduce the E. coli's natural number of 64 codons (a sequence of three DNA nucleotides corresponding to a specific amino acid) down to 59, which made it possible to encode 20 amino acids.

While it may sound like some sort of Frankenstein experiment that will lead to humanity's downfall, it's truly a landmark study, which may one day yield the development of organisms used in fighting diseases. Eventually, this may result in the creation of molecules working as living factories, capable of fighting off cancers and other deadly diseases.