Our lab seeks to translate our fundamental discoveries about RNA into synthetic biotechnologies that improve human and environmental health. By configuring sensing mechanisms that regulate the expression of reporter genes, we can develop molecular biosensors that produce visual outputs when specific compounds are present. Over the last five years, we have created new biosensors to address disaster-related exposures, geogenic contamination, physiological health markers, human infectious disease, agricultural pathogens, and toxicants from legacy infrastructure. The cell-free sensors we work with are low-cost, rapid, and can be freeze-dried and rehydrated on site, enabling cold-chain-free shipping and storage.
Our lab also designs platform strategies to enhance biosensor function and versatility, such as signal processing schemes that leverage nucleic acid nanotechnology, encapsulation, and material additives. We recently demonstrated the encapsulation of a fluoride riboswitch biosensor in lipid vesicles to confer protection against external degradation, and that the addition of melanin nanoparticles to cell-free reactions protects reactions from UV-induced signal loss.
Moreover, we place unique emphasis on transitioning technologies out of the lab and into the world. We demonstrate that our systems can be effectively deployed by testing on real-world samples directly in field settings. We also collect non-expert feedback to enable human-centered biosensor design. Most notable projects in our lab include a recent Chicagoland water contaminant study for rapid, at-home detection of lead, and CRISPR-Cas13a-based biosensors in Kenyan farms for crop virus monitoring. These efforts are done in partnership with social scientists and community organizers, enabling holistic, user-centered impact. Our current questions in this space are bold and ambitious: Can we sense anything anywhere? Can synthetic biology deliver on making diagnostics accessible, affordable, and available to all people? How can our expertise in sensing guide the development of new technologies, from next-generation inline monitors to smart therapeutics that respond to treat disease?
Featured Publications:
1. In vitro detection of glyphosate by coupling enzymatic conversion and transcriptional biosensors. R. A. Rasmussen, D. M. Brown, T. J. Lucci, R. Chiravuri, Y. Li, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (accepted)
2. Cell-Free biosensors: Where have we been and where do we need to go? A. Arce, D. M. Brown, H. A. Demissie, S. Feng, M. Naji, J. B. Lucks, Current Opinion Biotechnology. (2026) doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2026.103451
Link: [Journal]
3. Transcription factor-based biosensor development by machine learning-guided cell-free gene expression. B. M. Wang, N. Chiang, H. M. Ekas, D. M. Brown, G. Dildine, T. J. Lucci, J.-F. Gaillard, J. B. Lucks, A. S. Karim, D. Shukla, M. C. Jewett, Nature Communications. (2026) doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-66964-6
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
4. An integrated nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NASBA) and CRISPR-Cas13a-based platform for accurate and sensitive detection of cucumber mosaic virus. H. A. Demissie, S. Das, J. R. Thompson, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2025) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.5c00406
Link: [Journal]
5. Diversifying substrates and reaction conditions for polymerase strand recycling. Y. Li, A. Gundlach, A. Ellington, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2025) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.5c00207
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
6. UV-resistant cell-free reactions with synthetic melanin additives. L. M. Irie, D. M. Brown, J. B. Lucks, N. Gianneschi, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2025) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.5c00212
Link: [Journal]
7. Semiautomated production of cell-free biosensors. D. M. Brown, D. A. Phillips, D. C. Garcia, A. Arce, T. Lucci, J. P. Davies Jr., J. Mangini, K. A. Rhea, C. B. Bernhards, J. R. Biondo, S. M. Blum, S. D. Cole, J. A. Lee, M. S. Lee, N. D. Mcdonald, B. Wang, D. L. Perdue, W. Thavarajah, A. S. Karim, M. W. Lux, M. C. Jewett, A. E. Miklos, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2025) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.4c00703
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
8. Ultra-sensitive water contaminant detection with transcription factor interfaced microcantilevers. D. K. Agarwal, T. J. Lucci, K. J. Jung, G. S. Shekhawat, A. S. Green, J. B. Lucks, V. P. Dravid, ACS Nano. (2025) doi: 10.1021/acsnano.4c17598
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
9. A cell-free biosensor signal amplification circuit with polymerase strand recycling. Y. Li, T. J. Lucci, M. Villarruel Dujovne, K. J. Jung, D. A. Capdevila, J. B. Lucks, Nature Chemical Biology. (2025) doi: 10.1038/s41589-024-01816-w
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
10. A sensor for detecting aqueous Cu2+ that functions in a just-add-water format. T. Lucci, A. Neufarth, J.-F. Gaillard, J. B. Lucks, ACS Omega. (2024) doi: 10.1021/acsomega.4c08751
Link: [Journal]
11. Developing, characterizing and modeling CRISPR-based point-of-use pathogen diagnostics. J. K. Jung, K. S. Dreyer, K. E. Dray, J. J. Muldoon, J. George, S. Shirman, M. D. Cabezas, A. E. D’Aquino, M. S. Verosloff, K. Seki, G. A. Rybnicky, K. K. Alam, N. Bagheri, M. C. Jewett, J. N. Leonard, N. M. Mangan, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2024) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.4c00469
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
12. An automated, cell-free workflow for transcription factor engineering. H. M. Ekas, B. Wang, A. D. Silverman, J. B. Lucks, A. S. Karim, M. C. Jewett, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2024) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.4c00471
Link: [Journal]
13. Engineering a PbrR-based biosensor for cell-free detection of lead at the legal limit. H. M. Ekas, B. Wang, A. D. Silverman, J. B. Lucks, A. S. Karim, M. C. Jewett, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2024) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.4c00456
Link: [Journal]
14. At-home, cell-free synthetic biology education modules for transcriptional regulation and environmental water quality monitoring. J. K. Jung, B. J. Rasor, G. A. Rybnicky, A. D. Silverman, J. Standeven, R. Kuhn, T. Granito, H. M. Ekas, B. M. Wang, A. S. Karim, J. B. Lucks, M. C. Jewett, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2023) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.3c00223
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
15. The accuracy and usability of point-of-use fluoride biosensors: a field study in Nakuru County, Kenya. W. Thavarajah, P. Our, D. Awuor, K. Kiprotich, R. Aggarwal, J. B. Lucks, S. L. Young, npj Clean Water. (2023) doi: 10.1038/s41545-023-00221-5
Link: [Journal]
16. Robust and tunable performance of a cell-free biosensor encapsulated in lipid vesicles. M. A. Boyd, W. Thavarajah, J. B. Lucks, N. P. Kamat, Science Advances. (2023) doi: 10.1126/sciadv.add6605
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
17. Engineering a synthetic dopamine-responsive riboswitch for in vitro biosensing. S. V. Harbough, A. D. Silverman, Y. G. Chushak, K. Zimlich, M. Wolfe, W. Thavarajah, M. C. Jewett, J. B. Lucks, J. L. Chavez, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2022) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.1c00560
Link: [Journal]
18. Programming cell-free biosensors with DNA strand displacement circuits. K. J. Jung, K. K. Alam, Chloe M. Archuleta, J. B. Lucks, Nature Chemical Biology. (2022) doi: 10.1038/s41589-021-00962-9
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
19. ROSALIND: Rapid detection of chemical contaminants with in vitro transcription factor-based biosensors. K. J. Jung, K. K. Alam, J. B. Lucks, Methods in Molecular Biology. (2022) doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1998-8_20
Link: [Journal]
20. Cell-free biosensors for rapid detection of water contaminants. K. J. Jung, K. K. Alam, M. Verosloff, D. A. Capdevila, M. Desmau, P. R. Clauer, J. W. Lee, P. Q. Nguyen, P. A. Pasten, S. Matiasek, J.-F. Gaillard, D. P. Giedroc, J. J. Collins, J. B. Lucks, Nature Biotechnology. (2020) doi: 10.1038/s41587-020-0571-7
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
21. A primer on emerging field-deployable tools for democratizing global water quality monitoring. W. Thavarajah, M. Verosloff, K. J. Jung, K. K. Alam, J. Miller, M. C. Jewett, S. L. Young, J. B. Lucks, npj Clean Water. (2020) doi: 10.1038/s41545-020-0064-8
Link: [Journal]
22. Design and optimization of a cell-free atrazine biosensor. A. D. Silverman, U. Akova, K. K. Alam, M. C. Jewett, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2020) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.9b00388
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
23. Point-of-use detection of environmental fluoride via a cell-free riboswitch-based biosensor. W. Thavarajah, A. D. Silverman, M. Verosloff, N. Kelley-Loughnane, M. C. Jewett, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2020) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.9b00347
LInk: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
24. Design of a transcriptional biosensor for the portable, on-demand detection of cyanuric acid. X. Liu, A. D. Silverman, K. K. Alam, E. Iverson, J. B. Lucks, M. C. Jewett, S. Raman, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2019) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.9b00348
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
25. PLANT-Dx: A molecular diagnostic for point of use detection of plant pathogens. M. Verosloff, J. Chappell, K. L. Perry, J. R. Thompson, J. B. Lucks, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2019) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.8b00526
Link: [Journal]
26. Deconstructing cell-free extract preparation for in vitro application of transcriptional genetic circuitry. A. D. Silverman, N. Kelley-Loughnane, J. B. Lucks, M. Jewett, ACS Synthetic Biology. (2019) doi: 10.1021/acssynbio.8b00430
Link: [Journal] [BioRxiv]
Lucks Laboratory 