Join us for the STEAM Café this month! August’s STEAM talk, “Genetically Engineered Microbes for the Industries of Tomorrow”, will be presented by Dr. Tanvi Govil, a research scientist at South Dakota Mines.

Genetic engineering is the direct modification of the genes of an organism. Scientists can now manipulate virtually almost any aspect of a microbe, including intelligence and appearance, using homologous recombination or CRISPR technology, executed in three steps: identify, cut, and replace. Dr. Tanvi Govil, a research scientist at South Dakota Mines, will discuss her research into microbes that degrade corn and soybean biomass, and how advances in genetic engineering can enable scientists to exploit microorganisms for improved or enhanced sustainable microbially-produced alternatives such as bioplastics and biofertilizers.