Unlocking nature's code: Role of biological engineers

Inside a laboratory at the Grand Union of Innovation (GUi), the 27-year-old Ma Mingqian carefully transfers droplets of "mysterious liquid" with a pipette — a scene straight out of a potions class in Harry Potter.

Days later, ordinary houseplants glow softly in the dark. "It feels as if you've lit up the whole world," says Ma with a smile.

Ma Mingqian prepares a solution in the laboratory. [Photo/GUi]

Ma works at Hefei Shenbi Biology, one of China's pioneers in luminous plant technology. Her team is decoding nature's "light code" and writing it back into plants through gene editing. By using agrobacteria as carriers for luminescent genes, they can endow plants with natural bioluminescence.

Beyond plants, the team has also discovered a deep-sea microorganism that emits stable light, allowing its glow to last longer through enzymatic optimization.

The applications stretch far beyond the laboratory. Future luminous gardens, theme parks, and cultural tourism projects could offer magical experiences, while glowing potted plants may replace certain light fixtures in homes.

The technology also carries environmental promise — plants engineered to change color in response to pollutants can provide real-time monitoring of ecosystem health.

For Ma, the journey feels like destiny. Inspired by a news story about Shenbi Biology at the GUi, she joined the company after graduate studies in plant genetics. Now a research and development manager, she thrives on the challenge of turning scientific imagination into tangible products.

"We are not magicians," she says. "We are simply translators of nature's language."

As bioengineering advances, young innovators like Ma show how curiosity, persistence, and creativity can reshape daily life — bringing the magic of science closer to everyone.