Our genetic engineering design has always been inseparable from the comprehensive practice of human beings. In fact, integrated human practice has been driving the progress of our project. When doing social research and human practice, we consider problems and propose countermeasures at multiple levels and in multiple dimensions. We strive to treat depression and relieve the suffering of depressed patients, and help human society develop and biomedical progress. We also talk about depression research being incorporated into the development and planning of the United Nations-standard Beneficial Human Development Goals. These goals will be put into practice to contribute to human development. At the same time, we also outline detailed risk assessment predictions in integrated human practice and propose actionable solutions.

  We hope to help human development enter a virtuous cycle through these methods, and integrate love for human beings into the design of biological genetic engineering.

  In quantitative analysis, we found that more than 70% of people have depression patients around them, which is enough to prove that depression has become a common problem and should not be underestimated.

  According to the respondents' answers, most people believe that depression is mainly caused by three factors, namely physiological (gene), psychological and social factors. It is widely believed that depression is a difficult disease to detect because most people with depression do not expose their symptoms.

Question 1:

  Is it convenient to tell you the current treatment methods and costs, and how you feel about the treatment?

Patient 1:

  I may have adjusted the treatment time better myself, so it is a year and a half, but it is really expensive and the medicine is very expensive. There are physical transcranial magnetic therapy and EEG therapy and of course psychological counselling

Patient 2:

  My condition is more serious. I have to do electrotherapy every week, which is very painful.

Question 2:

  If we develop a new drug for the treatment of depression and put it into use, the treatment effect is good and efficient, would you be willing to take it as a patient?

Patient 1 (under treatment):

  I think there is no problem with the way of this drug, and if it is possible to cure the disease, I am definitely willing to accept it!

Patient 2:

  I am also willing to accept it, but I will pay attention to the side effects of the medicine.

  There are three major depression medications on the market today.

  Fluoxetine, paroxetine, paroxetine.

  Fluoxetine: It can be used for various depression patients, as well as patients with psychiatric disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, but fluoxetine can cause some negative effects of abnormal sleep, abnormal vision or difficulty breathing.

  Paroxetine: The effect is fast, but there may be a transition to manic episodes, and rapid discontinuation of paroxetine can lead to adverse reactions.

  Venlafaxine: This drug has a quick onset of action and is suitable for patients with depression in various situations. The adverse reactions are often nausea, sexual dysfunction and insomnia. In this way, there is no good drug for depression on the market.

  Compared with drugs on the market, our team's gene-edited probiotics can produce 5-HTP and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). This section focuses on detailing our role in genetic engineering.

1) The benefits of disease treatment in country's development

  1. In China, patients with depression must meet two conditions before receiving state subsidies. 1. Health insurance or social security is required; 2. Special disease certificates issued by public hospitals are required.

  2. U.S. healthcare costs now exceed 17% of GDP and continue to rise. Other countries spend less on health care, but the growth trend is the same. An aging population and the development of new treatments are partly responsible for the increase in spending.

  It can be seen that all countries spend a lot of money on depression. Our products can reduce medical expenses and control the cost of depression treatment.

2) The benefits of reducing depression in social psychology and society

MICRO（Personal dimension)：

  1. For patients, the use of mental probiotics can shorten the treatment time and cost, and greatly improve efficiency and practicability.

  2. Compared with other drugs on the market, mental probiotics have relatively fewer side effects and play a positive role in the health of patients.

  3. Intake of a certain amount of GABA can improve sleep quality and improve mental state. GABA can also have the advantages of high yield and good safety at a lower cost.

MACRO（Social dimension）：

  1. The per capita happiness index increases: interpersonal relationships are strengthened, and self-identity and belonging are improved.

  2. Promote economic growth and more stable social development. From a macroeconomic point of view, as more and more people with depression begin to use PDRP, this means an increase in the number of people who are able to work like ordinary employees, reduce unemployment, and promote economic development.

  3. Society will reduce suicide rates and panic. Living standards improved.

3) The benefits of reducing the harm of depression to human beings, such as economic growth and socially sustainable development

  As the increase in the total labour force leads to an increase in the factors of production, the total productive capacity increases. Therefore, the long-run aggregate supply curve shifts to the right (as shown in Figure 1[1]), which means that total social output increases. Better employment means that people have higher and higher disposable incomes, and people's incentives to be willing and able to buy increase, so consumers spend more, considering that consumer spending is a component of this, can bring the total. The increase in demand increases total demand. The AD curve will also shift to the right (Figure 2[2]), and the addition of AD and AS will lead to an increase in GDP without major changes in the general price level, thus achieving the goal of economic growth successfully. At the same time, each household is likely to spend more on education and health care to ensure future workforce replacement. Form a virtuous circle of long-term sustained economic growth.

(1) risk and downside

  The side effects produced by 5-HTP can be divided into two categories. The first category is physical discomfort such as diarrhea, stomach pain, loss of appetite, etc. due to incompatibility with the drug when taking it for the first time. The other category is related to the effect produced by 5-HTP, and the negative effect is greater. The two types of side effects are interrelated. Next, we will list some common side effects of patients after the use

  1. Diarrhea and vomiting are the more common adverse reactions after patients take 5-HTP due to the rapid formation of serotonin in the upper intestinal tract. 5-HTP can cause eosinophilic myalgia syndrome (EMS). Eosinophils have a defensive function in the body, but their increase also causes damage to their own tissues. Too many eosinophils can cause extreme muscle tenderness, myalgia, and blood abnormalities. Evidence suggests that eosinophilic myalgia syndrome is caused by 5-HTP supplement contaminants.

  2. When 5-HTP is combined with monoamine oxidase inhibitors or SSRI antidepressants, 5-HTP can cause acute serotonin syndrome. Serotonin syndrome is mainly manifested by changes in mental state, autonomic hyperactivity and neuromuscular abnormalities, and can also lead to abnormal vital signs such as tachycardia, hypertension and high fever, and severe disease can even lead to shock. Also, 5-HTP can cause nausea and vomiting when taken with carbidopa, a drug used to treat Parkinson's.

  3. The generalization that serotonin causes the narrowing of tiny blood vessels, thereby increasing the risk of thrombosis. And serotonin High levels of serotonin in the blood may lead to osteoporosis, etc. People with high blood pressure and people with osteoporosis are not recommended to take 5-HTP. And a small number of people will have allergic reactions to 5-HTP, and excessive use of 5-HTP can lead to organ failure.

(2) Restrictions on 5HTP use

  The addition of tryptophan to foods intended for human consumption is prohibited in most cases by regulation. However, it may be used for special nutritional purposes and under the supervision of a medical professional. Current U.S. regulations for 5-HTP are 150 to 800 mg per day for people with anxiety or depression.

(1) risk and downside

  GABA is produced naturally in the body, and GABA is considered safe.

  There isn't enough research to reveal the side effects of GABA supplements.

  1. GABA will inhibit the secretion of thyrotropin-releasing hormone and parathyroid-stimulating hormone-releasing hormone secreted by the hypothalamus, reducing the secretion of thyroxine and parathyroid hormone. After taking it, it will have adverse effects on people with hypothyroidism.

  2. It is best not to take it together with other antihypertensive drugs, and it is best not to take GABA for infants and pregnant women because of certain risks.

(2) Restrictions on GABA use

  GABA, sold as a dietary supplement, typically contains 500 to 750 mg of the neurotransmitter. The recommended dose of GABA varies by age, sex, and condition, with a maximum daily dose of 800 mg.

How to avoid potential risks and The solution to the problem

  In order to avoid direct entry of drugs containing 5-HTP and GABA into the body, resulting in the rapid formation of serotonin in the upper intestinal tract, adverse reactions such as diarrhea and vomiting. 5-HTP can cause eosinophilic myalgia syndrome (EMS). Overdose of these drugs can also cause extreme muscle tenderness, myalgia, blood abnormalities and organ failure, we plan to use special technology to package our bacteria safely into the intestinal system, where we can safely and stably form serotonin, which will not cause any harm to the body of patients with depression and can effectively alleviate their disease. The coating techniques we use are presented below:

Coating technology of Escherichia coli:

  Since the advent of probiotic bacteria encapsulation technology, it has been widely used in various microecological probiotic preparations. However, most probiotic preparations are embedded in three layers. In the actual application process, due to the high pH value of the human digestive tract, the strength of the wall material embedded with probiotics is low. A large number of bacterial flora appeared to die.

  In order to solve this problem, after many experiments, the researchers finally found that the self-embedding technology of probiotic strains can ensure that the activity of probiotics is not destroyed to the greatest extent so that it can resist gastric acid and choline smoothly enter the intestinal tract, and prevent the bacteria from entering the intestinal tract. After entering the intestinal tract, probiotics are released in a specific environment in the intestinal tract, so that a large number of live bacteria can successfully colonize the intestinal tract to play a role.

  The unique multi-layer probiotic encapsulation technology can be used for the strain to protect the probiotics so that the probiotics can play a greater role in human health. Multilayer embedding technology includes probiotic membrane, lipid membrane and polymer compound membrane to protect E. coli, which can be resistant to high temperature, saliva, bile and other digestive fluids.

  1. Since drug treatment is finally implemented in the treatment of human depression, ethical issues need to be considered in the human receptor testing that will be faced after animal experiments. For example, conduct an ethical assessment and sign a safety agreement with the experimenter.

  2. These doses of these drugs must be evaluated after they are officially put into use, because they are hormonal drugs, to avoid drug abuse. Both 5-HTP and GABA are available over the counter, but there are recommended dosages.

  Because depression is a kind of mental illness, the analysis and treatment of depression cannot be solved only from a certain dimension.

  1. Depression cannot be completely cured because biological dimensions can only solve physical problems, and psychotherapy and other factors can also affect depression.

  2. From a philosophical perspective, according to Freud's psychoanalysis, human psychology can be divided into three parts: conscious, preconscious and subconscious. Consciousness refers to everything that an individual is currently aware of. Preconscious refers to everything that is not presently conscious but can be brought into conscious content through recall. The subconscious refers to everything that is suppressed and cannot be recalled to consciousness again through memory, so the mental and spiritual troubles of depression cannot be solved by biotechnology.

  3. Depression analysis includes psychoanalysis and psychoanalysis. Psychoanalysis studies the phenomena of the subconscious, but because the subconscious itself cannot be known directly, it must be studied through some unique methods. These methods include the idea of free association, dream analysis, and psychoanalysis of everyday life.

How do we improve our project and HP:

  After the completion of the main body of this project, we have been able to obtain a strain that autonomously produces 5-HTP, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the stomach and intestines, which can effectively adjust the pathological state of patients with depression. But in preparing the vision for commercial large-scale pharmaceuticals, we encountered a severe problem. According to the "GMO Safety Management System", the handling requirements of laboratory-related test materials. Reliable measures should be taken to destroy and inactivate waste before disposal and discharge to prevent proliferation and pollute the environment. If genetically modified organisms are found to spread, remain or cause harm, effective measures must be taken immediately to control and eliminate them. When GMOs are stored, transferred, transported, destroyed and inactivated, corresponding safety management and preventive measures should be taken, specific equipment or sites should be provided, and a special person should be designated to manage and record [1].

  In this project, in order to solve the problem of transgenic contamination caused by the exclusion of our designed strains from the body, we designed a strain suicide system by ourselves. But before the strains are excreted from the body, due to changes in the environment, they self-enforce suicide orders. Specifically, we will use a small molecule promoter and a suicide gene. Since our intestinal probiotics are attached to the intestinal lining, they will not break away from the intestinal wall under normal conditions of non-detachment from the body. When our genetically modified E. coli is removed from the body, the promoter senses that the bacteria are not on the intestinal wall, and activates the suicide gene by itself, so that it can be destroyed before the transgenic bacteria are excreted. Currently envisioned promoters include the small molecule arabinose promoter [2], the light-inducible promoter [3] and the tetracycline regulatory system [4]. The suicide system envisaged in this project can effectively avoid the problem of genetic contamination, provide good regulation for the entire environment and the creatures in the environment, and can also help more depressed patients relieve their pain.

1). Raise awareness of the prevention of genetically modified pollution and promote the development of science and technology

  Our products make full use of genetically modified technology, but at the same time, we also design the corresponding strain suicide system to prevent it from polluting the surrounding environment. The potential harm of GMO contamination has been shown in previous cases: genetically modified canola was first grown commercially in Canada in 1995. But because farmers accidentally left some genetically modified canola seeds at harvest, gene drift occurred, and new types of canola that re-emerged a few years later were resistant to multiple herbicides, known as superweeds. Not only is this weed difficult to eradicate, but it also contaminates other species through, for example, cross-pollination, destroying seed quality. In February 2001, a report submitted by the British government's environmental consultant "British Nature" specifically described the threat of GM canola superweeds in Canada, which has an impact on people's health and crop production. [1] The suicide system of the strain can effectively ensure that the transgenic E. coli can initiate the suicide program when it leaves the intestinal environment, thereby effectively preventing the occurrence of transgenic pollution.

2). Popularize depression education and raise awareness of depression

  People's contempt for depression is very common in life, which leads to a high incidence of depression. Most people would take it lightly and be indifferent to the patient. Therefore, we will popularize relevant knowledge about depression on our own wiki and product manuals, including pathological causes, treatment methods, prevention of depression and so on. This will greatly improve the basic understanding of depression in different populations. Especially for the adolescent group, will learn how to deal with depression and seek medical treatment in time, which can fundamentally prevent the further development of depression and various dangerous conditions. However, patients with depression are often discriminated against in the group they live in, which often leads to depression and aggravation of symptoms, leading to the formation of a vicious circle. And because most depressed patients have psychological conditions such as low self-esteem and loneliness, which leads them to like to pretend that they are as strong as normal people, but people's lack of understanding of them will exacerbate their lack of belonging in their hearts. We will also focus on promoting this.

3). Promote economic development

  After using psychobiotics for a period of time, patients will gradually return to normal life. The patient's physical and mental health, work ability, professional ability and sports ability will be greatly improved. The improvement in working ability means that more and more people are invested in the manufacturing and service industries, and the production capacity of the whole society is greatly increased, which also promotes economic development and increases the employment rate. The increase in the employment rate makes the whole social environment more stable. , because the stable income brings them a relatively richer material and spiritual life enjoyment than before, which provides a happy family living environment for young people, so that they can return to normal learning and life, and the guarantee of education quality is also the future society. Labour and talent supply. The whole is a closed-loop incremental route to ensure the long-term development of the entire economy.