Latest revision as of 21:19, 9 July 2008

RSBL Glossary

(rev. 7/9/08)

Terms in this glossary are defined in the way that they are used by the Registry of Standard Biological Parts (RSBP). Many terms may have other definitions in a broader context, but the purpose here is to establish a controlled vocabulary so that RSBP users can read descriptions and instructions on the Registry with minimal ambiguity and confusion.

BioBrick – a DNA sequence engineered to conform with the BioBricks Part Standard (q.v.).

chassis - the cell type within which a synthetic-biological construct is installed. A "chassis" provides all the biochemical support (materials and energy) for a designed system to operate.

part – this word can be used in two ways: (1) in the strict (or “narrow”) sense, a biological component with a single well-defined function; (2) in a loose (or “broad”) sense, any item available from the Registry.

[COMMENTS. For purposes of general discussion, the word “part” refers to whatever component of a biological system that a synthetic biologist wants to consider . Thus the coding sequence for a protein is a “part,” but so is an inverter, and even the whole transcriptional machinery of a bacterial cell. This resembles the usage in other more familiar technologies, such as “auto parts,” which can be anything from a simple electrical fuse to sets of switches and controls, or even entire engines.]

plasmid – small, circular piece of DNA that can independently replicate in a cell.

[COMMENTS: Plasmids thus carry an origin of replication and no features that block the DNA-polymerase (replicating) enzyme. They also usually have one or more antibiotic resistance genes that protect their host cells from being killed by the corresponding antibiotics. Genetic engineering protocols typically call for inserting genes of interest into plasmids for amplification or modification.]

vector – a DNA molecule (plasmid or virus genome) that can transfer genes from one organism to another.