Theory 108/New facility/Synthetic biology
Minimal Cell
The claim
The set of genes required for independent life can only be established by building a cell from a reduced genome, because knockout studies cannot distinguish essential from redundant.
01Mechanism
Redundancy masks essentiality in single deletions.
02Prediction
Minimal genomes should be smaller than essentiality predictions.
03Refutation
Predicted essential sets sufficient would remove the need.