Adapting Cell-Free Protein Synthesis into a ‌genetic Code Kit�? for Biochemical Education at Cal Poly, SLO

Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) has emerged as an enabling biotechnology for discovery, biomanufacturing, point-of-care diagnostics, and education. Harnessing the genetic code in vitro provides an open platform that allows direct manipulation of the reaction conditions and biological machinery to enable inquiry-based learning. Here we report our efforts to adapt the CFPS biotechnology from the bench-top to our classrooms at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. We accomplish this by leveraging the open and flexible nature of the reaction to reformulate the reaction set-up in order to make it accessible to early-career scientists. Our reformulation of the CFPS reaction setup provides simplicity and improved reagent shelf life. Our simplified platform requires 80% fewer setup steps, making it more accessible to an early-career student with little-to-no laboratory experience. Importantly, the simplified platform remains flexible to accommodate a variety of learning objectives. The outcome is a “Genetic Code kit” that can enable students to pursue hypothesis-driven experiments for exploring the genetic code in a truly hands-on fashion within the classroom environment. The Genetic Code kit includes the necessary reagents, an instruction manual, and a worksheet. We aim to establish troubleshooting guides for instructors and students as well. The capacity to use the Genetic Code kit to teach broad topics such as genetic elements, reaction rates, and inhibitors’ mechanism of action will also open the possibilities for developing Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs).