Periodic Reporting for period 1 - BABOTS (BABOTS: The design and control of small swarming biological animal robots)
Période du rapport: 2023-10-01 au 2024-09-30
The BABOTS project promotes an innovative, disruptive technology bases on Biological Animal roBots (BABots). BABots are small animals, such as worms or insects, whose nervous system will be reprogrammed to execute new and useful behaviours. As a first step in developing the technology, the consortium will focus on the tiny 1mm-long nematode worm C. elegans, generating several genetic changes in its nervous system to perform biological human-designed tasks in an active an autonomous way. We use the BABots' scale and their ability to (inter)act within complex biological environments such as in the soil, on plants or even in our body, to perform delicate tasks. We envision, for example, farmer insects producing and distributing fertiliser and protecting crops by fighting off pests; medicinal nematodes entering the body, performing specific medical procedures and then leaving; sanitation cockroaches clearing up the sewage system, but staying out of the house. Although some of these tasks may be performed also by chemical means or using conventional robots, BABots will provide a level of agility, precision, effectiveness and bio-compatibility unattainable by any other technology. For example, BABots will provide a biological 100% environmentally-compatible technology for accomplishing tasks that are currently out of reach for conventional electromechanical or soft robots, which lack the high dexterity of BABots, refined through millions of years of natural evolution in combination with state-of-the-art biologically-based human design. The essential novelty that separates BABots from mere transgenic animals is that they will be active, and autonomous, and will produce desired complex responses to particular situations.
During the first year of the project, we successfully accomplished the objectives set in two milestones: i) Milestone M1, at month M3, concerning the setup of dissemination channels (website, social media, etc.), the definition of the experimental methods, as well as of the plans for data management and dissemination/exploitation activities; ii) Milestone M2 at month 12, concerning the completion of the first set of experiments on the engineering of synthetic circuits for aggregation and swarming, the building of the environment for experimentation with real/virtual gradients, and the development of the first version of the ethics framework. In the following, I provide further details of the scientific work related to Milestone M2, and I will briefly illustrate the work on those Tasks (i.e. T1.2 T1.3 T2.2 T3.1 T3.2 and T4.2) that started in the first year of the project and will be reported in the following reporting periods.
As far as it concerning synthetic circuit engineering, we have developed a pheromone-based aggregation behaviour in young hermaphrodites C. elegans. Hermaphrodites secrete sex pheromones to increase male attraction when they run out of sperm. We have express, through genetic engineering the receptor for sex-pheromone in hermaphrodites in order to make them attracted one to the other, and thus to induce aggregation and eventually swarming. The results of preliminary experiments illustrated in Deliverable D1 (D1.1) show that genetically-engineered hermaphrodites showed clear attraction from adult+4 days.
We have also started the exploration of a second approach for inducing swarming behaviour in C. elegans based on touch information. C. elegans sense gentle touch to the body via a set of touch receptor neurons (TRNs). We have coupled touch sensation and dwelling, such that worms encountering repeated touch by multiple other individuals tend to dwell, driving collective aggregation. Preliminary results are illustrated in Deliverable D1 (D1.1). Our work on the synthetic engineering of circuits for aggregation and swarming in C. elegans will continue in the next months. This work is expected to be completed at month M21 contributing to Milestone M3.
During the first year, we have completed the construction of the apparatus for experimentation with real/virtual gradients. In order to unravel how C. elegans collectives navigate and potentially share information to reach a target location we have generate a robust, repeatable and controlled environment that allow us to challenge the animals with versatile sensory experiences and accurately quantify their behaviour in these environments. We have built an odour chamber to generate controlled realistic
odour environments by integrating the odour chamber with a custom tracking microscope to image animals navigating within the chamber, allowing us to bridge the gap between individual and collective navigation. This work is detailed in Deliverable 4 (D2.1) and D5 (D2.2). This apparatus will be used to carry out the work of the other Tasks in work-package WP2.
We have also developed the first part of the Ethics Framework, which discusses issues related to potential harms to genetically modified C. elegans as living beings, and expected benefits from the use the BABots technology. The ethics framework part I is illustrated in deliverable D10 (D4.1). This framework will be expanded in the next months of the project with the analysis of other aspects related to the ethicality of BABots, as well as with data concerning the perception and evaluation of the BABots technology by different types of potential stakeholders and by the general public.
As mentioned above, apart from those Tasks whose activity has been already documented with deliverables submitted at month M12, other Tasks have started in this first year of the BABOTS project. In Task 1.3 the experimental work focuses on the design of mechanism, within the AWC chemosensory neuron, enabling switching between a sequence of behaviours. In Task 2.2 several experiments have been already run to study how variations in oxygen concentration as well as the combined presence of attraction and repulsion pheromones affect the spatial distribution of C. elegans and their locomotion. In Task 3.1 the initial data generated form Task 2.2 has been used to develop data driven models of aggregation and swarming behaviour in C. elegans. In Task 3.2 computer-based simulation models have been developed to analysis the roles of heterogeneity of behaviour in supporting aggregation and self-organized leadership. Preliminary work has also been done for Task 4.2 by taking an auxotrophic approach. This means that we established a dependency of C. elegans on an external, synthetic compound for its development and propagation.
As far as it concerning synthetic circuit engineering, we have developed a pheromone-based aggregation behaviour in young hermaphrodites C. elegans. Hermaphrodites secrete sex pheromones to increase male attraction when they run out of sperm. We have express, through genetic engineering the receptor for sex-pheromone in hermaphrodites in order to make them attracted one to the other, and thus to induce aggregation and eventually swarming. The results of preliminary experiments illustrated in Deliverable D1 (D1.1) show that genetically-engineered hermaphrodites showed clear attraction from adult+4 days.
We have also started the exploration of a second approach for inducing swarming behaviour in C. elegans based on touch information. C. elegans sense gentle touch to the body via a set of touch receptor neurons (TRNs). We have coupled touch sensation and dwelling, such that worms encountering repeated touch by multiple other individuals tend to dwell, driving collective aggregation. Preliminary results are illustrated in Deliverable D1 (D1.1). Our work on the synthetic engineering of circuits for aggregation and swarming in C. elegans will continue in the next months. This work is expected to be completed at month M21 contributing to Milestone M3.
During the first year, we have completed the construction of the apparatus for experimentation with real/virtual gradients. In order to unravel how C. elegans collectives navigate and potentially share information to reach a target location we have generate a robust, repeatable and controlled environment that allow us to challenge the animals with versatile sensory experiences and accurately quantify their behaviour in these environments. We have built an odour chamber to generate controlled realistic
odour environments by integrating the odour chamber with a custom tracking microscope to image animals navigating within the chamber, allowing us to bridge the gap between individual and collective navigation. This work is detailed in Deliverable 4 (D2.1) and D5 (D2.2). This apparatus will be used to carry out the work of the other Tasks in work-package WP2.
We have also developed the first part of the Ethics Framework, which discusses issues related to potential harms to genetically modified C. elegans as living beings, and expected benefits from the use the BABots technology. The ethics framework part I is illustrated in deliverable D10 (D4.1). This framework will be expanded in the next months of the project with the analysis of other aspects related to the ethicality of BABots, as well as with data concerning the perception and evaluation of the BABots technology by different types of potential stakeholders and by the general public.
As mentioned above, apart from those Tasks whose activity has been already documented with deliverables submitted at month M12, other Tasks have started in this first year of the BABOTS project. In Task 1.3 the experimental work focuses on the design of mechanism, within the AWC chemosensory neuron, enabling switching between a sequence of behaviours. In Task 2.2 several experiments have been already run to study how variations in oxygen concentration as well as the combined presence of attraction and repulsion pheromones affect the spatial distribution of C. elegans and their locomotion. In Task 3.1 the initial data generated form Task 2.2 has been used to develop data driven models of aggregation and swarming behaviour in C. elegans. In Task 3.2 computer-based simulation models have been developed to analysis the roles of heterogeneity of behaviour in supporting aggregation and self-organized leadership. Preliminary work has also been done for Task 4.2 by taking an auxotrophic approach. This means that we established a dependency of C. elegans on an external, synthetic compound for its development and propagation.
During the first year of the BABOTS project, the main impact has been achieved in science with the publication of 10 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals and 2 manuscripts in international peer-reviewed conference proceedings.
There has been also an important impact in terms of dissemination and communication activities through participation at international conferences and public events and the distribution of printed material to illustrate the objectives of the BABOTS project to the general public and to regional authorities.
There has been also an important impact in terms of dissemination and communication activities through participation at international conferences and public events and the distribution of printed material to illustrate the objectives of the BABOTS project to the general public and to regional authorities.