Programming Microbe-Computer Interaction for Customized Life-Nonlife and Cross-Life Communication

The extension of human-computer interaction (HCI) paradigm to non-intelligent microbe-computer interaction (MCI) is attractive for building generalized life-nonlife communication. Main challenges lie in how to construct biohybrid interface within individual MCI unit and program communication among different units. Here, we designed opto-interfaced MCI unit composed of engineered microbes and computer terminals, for enabling quantifiable transduction between microbial signals and digital signals. These units were able to serve as life-centric biohybrid sensors, actuators and transceivers. Based on these units, we established programmable cross-life communication architectures capable of unicast, multicast, and logic-gate-driven communication with dynamic control. The architectures were validated in in multiple scenarios, including the biomedical monitoring-triggered therapeutic intervention at tumor, epidermal and intestinal scenarios, and the environmental unmanned monitoring of water contaminants. In summary, we provide a scalable strategy for building customized life-nonlife and cross-life communication, which is expected to complement living biosystems into the internet of things (IoT).