Plastic Degradation ™

THE SCIENCE

We’re breaking the mold when it comes to plastics on this planet.

Plastic is a macro problem.

Breaking is the micro solution.

Empowering

biology to

eliminate

plastic

waste

BREAKING SCIENCE

Breaking Through

Discovering Microbe X-32™

We've discovered microorganisms that naturally feed off the chemicals and compounds in waste by digesting and breaking them down into harmless organic matter. And now we're enhancing these microorganisms and releasing them worldwide to tackle the decades of debris scattered across our landfills and oceans.

Breaking Through

We call our first discovery

Incubated from Colossal Labs.
In conjunction with Harvard & Wyss Institute.

Our Ground-Breaking Discovery

Microbe variants

Iterations 1 - 32

We at Harvard/ Wyss Institute, Colossal, and Breaking have identified that MICROBE X-32™ has the potential to transform the landscape of plastic pollution by accelerating the breakdown process of various types of plastics that are traditionally challenging to degrade.

Plastics, comprised of a myriad of polymers have long posed a significant environmental challenge due to their persistence in the environment.

That’s right, we’ve
discovered
microorganisms that eat
plastic alive.

And we’re genetically enhancing microbes to be hungry for it.

Our mission began a few years ago with bioprospecting. That’s a fancy way of saying we were like Indiana Jones on the hunt for the Holy Grail - in this case microorganisms. Scouring the planet through the lens of a microscope. In lakes, rivers, bogs, swamps and more.

Until we found our first treasure. We isolated it and identified it as Microbe X-32™, a microorganism that can use multiple major types of plastic (polyesters, polyolefins, and polyamides) as the sole carbon and energy source for its growth.

Until we found our first treasure. Then isolated it and identified it as Microbe X-32™, a mircrorganism that can use multiple major types of plastic (polyesters, polyolefins, and polyamides) as the sole carbon and energy source for its growth.

Microbe X-32™
Breaks Down
Polyesters / Polyolefins / Polyamides

Among them polyolefins, and polyamides, have the toughest carbon-to-carbon and have never been reported to be degraded by microbes without any pretreatment. The interaction of Microbe X-32™ with these polymer chains results in the output of very innocuous substances, namely water, carbon dioxide, and biomass. Ongoing efforts are being done to further characterize the biomass.

Plastic waste is
on the menu.

Conventional methods often fall short of efficiently processing these materials, leading to vast accumulations of plastic waste across landfills, oceans, and our environment.

Unlike its recycling plant counterparts,

this microscopic

marvel doesn't just
break down plastic;

it devours plastic waste as its sole source of carbon for energy. Imagine it as a microscopic Pac-Man, gobbling up the notorious synthetic plastic waste. Its ability to consume such a wide range of plastic types makes it

A GAME CHANGER

IN

THE

FIGHT

AGAINST

PLASTIC

POLLUTION

A

GAME

CHANGER

IN

THE

FIGHT

AGAINST

PLASTIC

POLLUTION

Enhancing Microbe X-32™ with Genetic Engineering

The discovery of Microbe X-32™ offers a promising solution to this global crisis. By harnessing the natural abilities of this microorganism, we aim to genetically engineer it to enhance its plastic-degrading capabilities further. Through genetic modification and targeted evolution, we envision a future where Microbe X-32™ can rapidly break down even the most resilient types of plastics into simpler molecules that are amiable to nature.

The potential applications of this breakthrough extend beyond mere waste management. As Microbe X-32™ degrades plastics, it generates biomass containing different biomolecules that may hold immense value in various industries. These molecules could potentially be utilized in the production of biofuels, biodegradable plastics, and high-value chemicals.

This groundbreaking discovery is still in its early stages, but the potential is clear. The plastic-eating microorganism could be the key to unlocking a cleaner, greener future, one microscopic bite at a time. Stay tuned as this tiny hero embarks on its mission to devour plastic and pave the way for a more sustainable tomorrow.

Our Scientific
Process

Boosting plastic degradation by enhancing Microbe X-32™

Product Y

Product Z

Product X

Evolve and Engineer

Use synthetic biology tools to evolve the natural isolates to up-regulate the degradation and use genetic engineering methods on them to make them SuperMicrobes

Scale up

Work with commercial partners to scale up the production of SuperMicrobe(s) tailored towards the specific degradation usecases

Identify Enzymes

Use synthetic biology tools to identify and purify the enzyme(s) that are involved in plastic degradation

Evolve and Engineer

Use synthetic biology tools to evolve the enzyme(s) to up-regulate the degradation and Engineer them to make them SuperEnzymes

Scale Up

Work with commercial partners to scale up the production of Transformed microbe(s) for potential specific / ecological degradation use-cases

Transformation

Transform the SuperEnzymes chemistry to model / ecological microbe(s) for targeted applications

Scale up

Work with commercial partners to scale up the production of SuperEnzyme(s) tailored towards the specific degradation use-cases

Breaking Down
the Benefits of
Microbe X-32™

Our planet’s plastic nightmare needs to end.

Plastic Pollution Mitigation

By accelerating the breakdown process of various types of plastics, including those that are traditionally difficult to degrade, this microorganism and its derivatives can help mitigate the accumulation of plastic waste in landfills, oceans, and other ecosystems. By reducing the amount of plastic pollution in the environment, it helps safeguard wildlife and ecosystems from the harmful impacts of plastic debris.

Bioremediation

While larger plastic pieces are the primary target for similar existing technologies, our research focuses on BugX to tackle microplastics and nanoplastics, tiny plastic fragments posing significant environmental and health concerns. This could contribute to cleaner ecosystems and potentially reduce microplastic pollution in the food chain.

Promoting Circular Economy

Instead of viewing plastic waste as a disposable material, MICROBE X-32™ transforms it into valuable resources. By converting plastic into breakdown molecules that can be used to produce biofuels, biodegradable plastics, and high-value chemicals, it promotes resource conservation and reduces reliance on finite fossil fuel-derived resources.

Energy Efficiency

Traditional plastic recycling methods often require significant energy inputs and can result in the degradation of plastic materials into lower-quality products. In contrast, this microorganism offers a more energy-efficient approach to plastic recycling. By harnessing the natural enzymatic activity of the microorganism, it breaks down plastics into simpler molecules with minimal energy expenditure, thus reducing the environmental footprint of the recycling process.

Economic Opportunities

The breakdown molecules produced by this microorganism have immense economic potential. By generating valuable byproducts that can be used in various industries, including biofuels, plastics manufacturing, and chemical production, it creates new economic opportunities while simultaneously reducing the environmental costs associated with plastic waste disposal.

CLOSE

Sukanya
Punthambaker, PH.D.

Co-Founder and CEO

Sukanya Punthambaker, Ph.D., has over two decades of experience in life sciences research and biotechnology. Previously, she worked extensively with Dr. George Church at Harvard Medical School and the Wyss Institute, for a number of years on several technology development projects in synthetic biology, sequencing and protein engineering. She has held leadership roles having taught neuroscience to over 100 undergraduate students, while at the University of Michigan, collaborated with multiple scientists and teams at Harvard to take an idea to completion in the form of scientific publications and commercializations, and demonstrated multidisciplinary expertise working on a range of projects from DNA nanotechnology to genetically engineered microbes for sustainability.

She has received several highly prestigious awards including the Department of Biotechnology - Junior Research Fellowship, India, the Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor Award and the Okkelberg Award to an exceptional senior graduate student, both from the University of Michigan. She has co-authored impactful publications in reputed peer reviewed journals such as Nature, Science, NAR, PNAS, etc. She earned her PhD in molecular biology from University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MS in biotechnology and BS in microbiology, both from India.

Vaskar
Gnyawali, Ph.D.

Co-Founder and CSO

Vaskar Gnyawali, Ph.D. brings over 13 years of versatile engineering experience to his role as Chief Science Officer (CSO). His expertise spans various engineering domains, including computer engineering, microsystems, biomechanical engineering, and most recently, microbial engineering. Previously, at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, he applied his expertise in solving complex biological problems, such as developing a novel encapsulation technology for the enhanced delivery of biologic drugs and smart food ingredients, under the mentorship of Prof. Donald Ingber.

Vaskar has garnered numerous accolades for his academic and entrepreneurial prowess, including the prestigious Governor General’s Gold Medal and Doctoral Completion Award for his outstanding achievements during his doctoral studies, and a leadership scholarship for his master’s degree. Furthermore, he has made significant contributions to impactful publications and inventions.

Vaskar earned his bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering from the Institute of Engineering at Tribhuvan University in Nepal. He continued his academic journey by obtaining a master's degree from the University of Freiburg in Germany. Later, he pursued his doctoral studies at Ryerson University (Toronto Metropolitan University) in Toronto, Canada, culminating in the attainment of his doctoral degree.

George
Church

Co-Founder

George leads Synthetic Biology at the Wyss Institute, where he oversees the directed evolution of molecules, polymers, and whole genomes to create new tools with applications in regenerative medicine and bio-production of chemicals. Among his recent work at the Wyss is development of a technology for synthesizing whole genes, and engineering whole genomes, far faster, more accurate, and less costly than current methods. George is widely recognized for his innovative contributions to genomic science and his many pioneering contributions to chemistry and biomedicine. In 1984, he developed the first direct genomic sequencing method, which resulted in the first genome sequence (the human pathogen, H. pylori). He helped initiate the Human Genome Project in 1984 and the Personal Genome Project in 2005. George invented the broadly applied concepts of molecular multiplexing and tags, homologous recombination methods, and array DNA synthesizers. His many innovations have been the basis for a number of companies including Editas (Gene therapy); Gen9bio (Synthetic DNA); and Veritas Genetics (full human genome sequencing).

George is Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is Director of the U.S. Department of Energy Technology Center and Director of the National Institutes of Health Center of Excellence in Genomic Science. He has received numerous awards including the 2011 Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science from the Franklin Institute and election to the National Academy of Sciences and Engineering.

Donald
Ingber, M.D., Ph.D.

Co-Founder

Donald E. Ingber, M.D., Ph.D., is the Founding Director of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, the Judah Folkman Professor of Vascular Biology at Harvard Medical School and the Vascular Biology Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, and the Hansjörg Wyss Professor of Bioinspired Engineering at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He received his B.A., M.A., M.Phil., M.D. and Ph.D. from Yale University.

Ingber is a pioneer in the field of biologically inspired engineering, and at the Wyss Institute, he currently leads scientific and engineering teams that cross a broad range of disciplines to develop breakthrough bio-inspired technologies to advance healthcare and to improve sustainability. His work has led to major advances in mechanobiology, cell structure, tumor angiogenesis, tissue engineering, systems biology, nanobiotechnology and translational medicine. Through his work, Ingber also has helped to break down boundaries between science, art, and design.

Ingber has authored more than 500 publications and 165 patents, founded 5 companies, and has presented 550 plenary presentations and invited lectures world-wide. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Medicine, National Academy of Inventors, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He was named one of the Top 20 Translational Researchers world-wide in 2012 and 2020 (Nature Biotechnology), a Leading Global Thinker of 2015 (Foreign Policy magazine), and has received numerous other honors in a broad range of disciplines, including the Robert A. Pritzker Award and the Shu Chien Award (Biomedical Engineering Society), Rous Whipple Award (American Society for Investigative Pathology), Lifetime Achievement Award (Society of In Vitro Biology), Leading Edge Award (Society of Toxicology), Founders Award (Biophysical Society), Department of Defense Breast Cancer Innovator Award, and Wilbur Cross Medal from Yale University.

Ingber has made great strides in translating his innovations into commercial products and many are now either in clinical trials or currently being sold. Examples of technologies Ingber has developed include therapeutics for cancer and pandemic viruses; micropatterned culture substrate research tools; a dialysis-like sepsis therapeutic device that clears blood of pathogens and inflammatory toxins along with a companion diagnostic; an anticoagulant surface coating for medical devices that replaces the need for dangerous blood-thinning drugs; a shear stress-activated nanotherapeutic that targets clot-busting drugs and vasodilators to sites of vascular occlusion; low cost nasopharyngeal swabs and highly sensitive multiplexed electrochemical sensors for COVID-19 diagnostics; and Human Organ Chips lined by living human cells that are being used to replace animal testing for drug development and personalized medicine. Ingber’s Organ Chip technology was named one of the Top 10 Emerging Technologies by the World Economic Forum and Design of the Year by the London Design Museum. It was also acquired by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City for its permanent design collection.

Bryan
Mejia-Sosa

Senior Scientist

Bryan Mejia-Sosa is a multidisciplinary scientist who earned his Bachelor's degree in Biological Engineering from MIT where his interest in synthetic biology and sustainable development first led him to study and engineer microbes for the production of terpenes as jet fuel precursors. He later graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a Master's in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering where he modified oleaginous yeast for the production of value-added fatty acids. Since then, he's modified filamentous fungi and bacteria for various industrial applications, and now brings his diverse engineering background to Breaking.

Alba
Tull

Co-Founder

Alba Tull is a world-renowned storyteller, environmental activist, and philanthropist. She is currently on the board of Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Science Center, The Jackie Robinson Foundation, and is a member of Carnegie Mellon University’s Highlands Circle.

Kent
Wakeford

Kent Wakeford is co-founder and co-CEO of Form Bio, a leading computational biology platform with a mission of empowering scientists to discover and manufacture therapeutics for genetic diseases. He is a co-founder and former COO of Colossal Biosciences which partnered with Harvard and the George Church Lab to apply advancements in synthetic biology to loss of biodiversity.

Prior, Kent co-founded multiple technology and data science companies and has created over $3B in shareholder value, including one publicly traded company (IAS: NASDAQ). He is the co-inventor on over 85 patents in software and applied data science.

Benn
Lamm

Co-Founder

Ben Lamm is the co-founder and CEO of Colossal. Ben is a serial technology entrepreneur driven to solve the most complex challenges facing our planet. For over a decade, Ben has built disruptive businesses that future-proof our world. In addition to leading and growing his own companies, he is passionate about emerging technology, science, space and climate change. Active in angel investing, incubators and startup communities, Ben invests in software and emerging tech, and is deeply engaged in the technology, defense and climate change communities.

Prior to Colossal, Ben served as the founder and CEO to a number of companies, including Hypergiant, an enterprise AI software company focused on critical infrastructure, space and defense acquired by Trive Capital; Conversable, the leading conversational intelligence platform that helps brands reach customers through automated experiences acquired by LivePerson; and Chaotic Moon, a global creative technology powerhouse acquired by Accenture. Ben was also the co-founder of Team Chaos, a consumer gaming company acquired by Zynga.

Ben is a fellow of the Explorer’s Club, whose mission is to promote the scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space by supporting research and education in the physical, natural and biological sciences. He also serves as a Scientific Advisory Board member on the Planetary Society and sits on the Advisory Board for the Arch Mission. Ben has appeared as a thought leader in many publications, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Wired, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and Newsweek on topics such as innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.

John
Warner, PH.D

Scientific Advisor

John Warner is one of the founders in the field of green chemistry. He wrote the book that provides the definition and 12 principles of green chemistry with Paul Anastas in 1998. As an industrial chemist, he has over 350 patents and has worked with hundreds of companies worldwide. He received the Perkin Medal in 2014 from The Society of Industrial Chemistry.

As an academic, he was a tenured full professor of chemistry and a tenured full professor of plastics engineering at the University of Massachusetts where he started the world’s first PhD program in Green Chemistry. He has over 120 publications in synthetic methodologies, non covalent derivatization, polymer photochemistry, metal oxide semiconductors and green chemistry. In 2022 he received the August Wilhelm von Hofmann Medal from the German Chemical Society and in 2004 the Presidential Award for excellence in science mentoring (PAESMEM) from the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and President George W Bush.

As an inventor, John’s inventions have led to the founding of many companies in the fields of photovoltaics, neurochemistry, construction materials and cosmetics. In 2016 he received the Lemelson Invention Ambassadorship from the Lemelson Foundation and the American Association for the Advancement of the Sciences (AAAS). John is a member of the Club of Rome, Distinguished Professor of Green Chemistry at Monash University in Australia, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, and Honorary Professor of Chemistry at the Technical University of Berlin where they have named the “John Warner Center for Start Ups in Green Chemistry.” John currently serves as President and CEO of The Technology Greenhouse.

Beth
Shapiro, PH.D

Scientific Advisor

Beth Shapiro is an evolutionary biologist who specializes in the genetics of ice age animals and plants. A pioneer in the scientific field called “ancient DNA,” Beth has traveled extensively in the Arctic regions of Alaska, Siberia, and Canada collecting bones and other remains of long-dead creatures including mammoths, giant bears, and extinct camels and horses. Using DNA sequences extracted from these remains, Beth’s work aims to better understand how the distribution and abundance of species changed in response to major climate changes in the past, and why some species and communities are more resilient than others, with a goal to help develop strategies for conservation of endangered species and ecosystems today. Prior to joining Colossal as Chief Science Officer, Beth was a Professor and Director of the Paleogenomics Laboratory at the University of California Santa Cruz and an Investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Beth is highly acclaimed for her research; she has been named a Searle Scholar, Packard Fellow, National Geographic Explorer, and MacArthur Fellow, and is an elected Fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the prestigious American Academy of Arts & Sciences. She is also an award-winning popular science author and communicator whose books “How to Clone a Mammoth: The Science of De-extinction” (Princeton University Press 2015, 2020) and “Life As We Made It” (Basic Books 2021) explore how humans have been manipulating life on Earth for as long as we have existed and the potential of extending this to bring extinct species back to life.

Jon Kaneshiro

Scientific Advisor

Jon Kaneshiro is Vice President of Oahu Waste Services, Inc., Hawaii's largest waste hauling and recycling company. Jon oversees OWS and its subsidiaries' investments and strategic initiatives across their recycling and composting operations, real estate holdings, and expansion efforts. Prior, Jon held algorithm development and strategy positions in quantitative finance and technology firms.

Jon currently serves on the board of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, the Island of Oahu's municipal water system. Jon has a bachelor's degree in civil and environmental engineering from Loyola Marymount University and a master's degree in environmental engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Adnan Syed, Ph.D

Senior Scientist

Adnan spent 14 years at Harvard and the University of Michigan bridging ecological and genetic mechanisms of bacterial community formation. He is a holistic microbiologist skilled in assay development and high-throughput screening. Adnan is passionate about using biology to clean the world. Outside of the lab, Adnan loves to travel and share his wonder of the natural world with his kids.

Yuki
Sugimoto, Ph.D.

Yuki Sugimoto was born and raised in Japan. His academic journey led to earning a Ph.D in Natural Product Chemistry. Throughout his research, Yuki explored the intricate world of microbial metabolites. Now, with a focus on microbial engineering, he is dedicated to uncovering the remarkable abilities of microbes in order to solve environmental challenges.

Heidi
Schindel, Ph.D.

Sr. Bioinformatician

Heidi Schindel is a computational biologist specializing in applying multi-omics and AI/ML approaches to optimize non-model microbe engineering and scale-up efforts. She earned a PhD in Biochemistry from Indiana University, where she combined computational and lab techniques to characterize a novel bacterial microcompartment and multiple regulatory systems in purple photosynthetic bacteria. She then pursued a postdoc at Oak Ridge National Lab developing genetic tools for metabolic engineering of multiple non-model microbes as part of waste-to-fuels projects within the DOE Center for Bioenergy Innovation and Agile BioFoundry. She has since worked at climate-tech companies utilizing synthetic biology and computational approaches to help develop carbon-neutral cement (Biomason) and convert greenhouse gas emissions to useful chemicals (LanzaTech). Her industrial experience ranges from initial bacterial domestication and engineering to optimizing performance throughout the scale-up process. She is passionate about harnessing the potential of microbes to mitigate the effects of climate change and pollution and excited for the opportunity to be a part of Breaking.