Greenlab taps Ginkgo for enzymes to remediate “forever chemicals”

In Arkansas, Greenlab has tapped Boston-based strain developer Ginkgo Bioworks to discover a novel enzyme to biodegrade PFAS, a group of “forever chemicals” implicated in adverse health impacts. Specifically, Greenlab has partnered with Ginkgo Enzyme Services, which provides companies with end-to-end enzyme discovery and optimization R&D services.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ginkgo will lead a discovery campaign leveraging its vast metagenomic database to identify a library of PFAS-degrading enzymes. Ginkgo will then use advanced ultra-high throughput screening methods to identify unique enzymes with desired activity and transfer the best candidates to GreenLab. In later stages of this collaboration, Ginkgo will further engage in AI-enabled enzyme engineering to further improve on the discovered enzyme.

“This project is the first step in a journey that could potentially lead to the first deployment of a commercially viable enzymatic solution that can degrade one of the most recalcitrant chemicals in existence,” the companies say in a press release.