AI Designed DNA Sequences Now Control Genes in Mammalian Cells

In a major step forward for synthetic biology, scientists at the Center for Genomic Regulation in Barcelona have used artificial intelligence to design brand-new DNA sequences that can control gene activity in living mammalian cells. This study, published on May 8, 2025, shows that AI can create synthetic regulatory elements, small pieces of DNA that decide when and where a gene is turned on.

The AI model developed by the team doesn’t rely on copying natural DNA. Instead, it generates new sequences from scratch that are customized to work in specific cell types. For example, the model can design a sequence that activates a gene only in stem cells that are on their way to becoming red blood cells, while leaving other cells alone.

To test their work, the researchers built these sequences in the lab and inserted them into mouse blood cells. The results confirmed that the AI-made DNA successfully activated the right genes in the right cells. That kind of control is incredibly valuable for future treatments where you want to change gene activity only in a targeted group of cells.

This kind of precision could lead to safer and more effective gene therapies, where unwanted side effects are avoided because the treatment only works where it’s needed.

AI is now helping us go beyond what nature provides, letting scientists write DNA code that behaves exactly how we want it to. That changes the game for genetics, medicine, and our ability to design life at the molecular level.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/05/250508112324.htm