ONHS Report: DARPA-SN-26-89

Non-Optical Methods for High Speed Protein Control

Solicitation ID: DARPA-SN-26-89

Agency: DARPA/BTO

Type: Special Notice

Deadline: 2026-12-08T17:00:00 ET

Eligibility: Maybe (Topic Dependent)

Funding: Around $400,000 for a 12-month period of performance

Doc Type: BAA

Clearance: No

Program Manager: ERIS@darpa.mil

Last Updated: 2026-06-08 16:02

Analyzed File: DARPA-SN-26-89.pdf

Eligibility Reasoning

While all submissions will be evaluated against the standard criteria published in the ERIS Master Solicitation, BTO will be specifically looking for solutions that demonstrate strength in the following areas.

Note: This is an AI-generated summary...

Summary

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Biological Technologies Office (BTO) is seeking innovative solutions via the ERIS Marketplace for a new class of rapidly switchable, non-optogenetic protein domains for real-time cellular control. The objective is to develop a robust, modular molecular tool regulated by a massless, non-optical external signal, such as magnetic fields or focused ultrasound, to overcome the limitations of optogenetics (e.g., spectral crosstalk). Key technical requirements for the proposed protein domains include activation/deactivation kinetics of ≤ 2 seconds, robust performance for at least 300 repetitions in a living cell, and demonstrated versatility by functioning on both split-protein (dimerization-based) and allosteric (conformation-based) configurations. Solutions that expand or optimize existing optogenetic, light-based, or chemical systems are explicitly out of scope for this effort.

Overall Technical Areas

Synthetic BiologyProtein EngineeringNon-Optical Cellular ControlMolecular Tool DevelopmentMagnetogeneticsSonogeneticsBiophysical Signal TransductionIn Vivo System CharacterizationQuantitative Cellular AnalysisSpatiotemporal Protein ControlAllosteric & Dimerization ControlAI/ML for BiologyCell-Based Therapeutics

Probable LBNL Areas

BSACSAEESAESAETAPSA

Focus Areas

Example Priorities:

development of bio-compatible, modular protein domains, specifically engineered for in vivo expression within a host cell, that can be regulated by a massless, non-optical external signal (e.g., magnetic fields, focused ultrasound, etc.)
develop a robust and versatile molecular tool for massless information transfer across a cell membrane, intended to supplement existing synthetic biology platforms.
innovative approaches to protein engineering, domain design, and signal transduction that overcome the limitations of existing solutions.
proposals seeking to expand, optimize, or multiplex existing optogenetic, light-based, or chemical systems are explicitly out of scope for this effort.

Specific Technical Skills:

Protein EngineeringSynthetic BiologyMolecular BiologyDomain DesignSignal TransductionGenetic EngineeringBiophysicsIn Vivo ExpressionBioinformatics

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Anandharaj Marimuthu	0.72	BSA \| DOE Joint Genome Institute \| JGI Technology Dept
Thomas Eng	0.69	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Aindrila Mukhopadhyay	0.69	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Aeron Tynes Hammack	0.68	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility
Grigory Tikhomirov	0.68	PSA \| PHY \| Detector Development
Hector Garcia Martin	0.68	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Rohan Adwankar	0.67	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Blake Simmons	0.67	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Seth Carbon	0.67	BSA \| Env. Genomics & Sys. Biology \| BioSystems Data Science
Jennifer Doudna	0.66	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Structural Biology Dept

Example Priorities:

The primary goals are to achieve activation/deactivation kinetics of ≤ 2 seconds, demonstrate robust performance of at least 300 repetitions in a living cell...
Existing non-optogenetic cellular control systems lack the combination of speed, repeatability, and modularity required for high-frequency operations like enzymatic control.
The proposal should articulate a clear plan to reach the specified kinetic and repeatability metrics.
A proven track record of developing novel molecular tools and quantitatively characterizing their performance in living cells is highly desirable.

Specific Technical Skills:

Quantitative BiologyKinetic AnalysisLive-Cell ImagingBiophysical CharacterizationCellular AssaysMicroscopySystem OptimizationStatistical AnalysisReliability Engineering

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Rohan Adwankar	0.69	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Jenny Onley	0.68	BSA \| Env. Genomics & Sys. Biology \| Molecular Ecosystems Bio
Zhao Hao	0.68	EESA \| EG \| Geochemistry Dept
Hector Garcia Martin	0.68	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Eileen Dawson	0.68	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Thomas Eng	0.68	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Aeron Tynes Hammack	0.68	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility
Anandharaj Marimuthu	0.68	BSA \| DOE Joint Genome Institute \| JGI Technology Dept
Peter Ercius	0.68	ESA \| MF \| MF NCEM Facility
Seth Carbon	0.67	BSA \| Env. Genomics & Sys. Biology \| BioSystems Data Science

Example Priorities:

...prove the domain's versatility by demonstrating its function on both split-protein (dimerization-based) and allosteric (conformation-based) protein configurations.
While approaches based on magnetogenetics (e.g., electromagnetic preceptive gene) are of high interest, other innovative modalities that meet the performance goals are encouraged.
Approaches that multiplex non-optogenetic protein control are also encouraged.
Solutions should demonstrate a clear potential to become a foundational tool in synthetic biology...unlock new capabilities in fields such as biomanufacturing, cell-based therapeutics, and biosensing...

Specific Technical Skills:

MagnetogeneticsSonogeneticsAllosteric RegulationInduced DimerizationBiomanufacturingCell-based TherapeuticsBiosensor DevelopmentMultiplexed SystemsElectromagnetics

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Anandharaj Marimuthu	0.69	BSA \| DOE Joint Genome Institute \| JGI Technology Dept
Rohan Adwankar	0.69	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Grigory Tikhomirov	0.68	PSA \| PHY \| Detector Development
Aeron Tynes Hammack	0.68	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility
Thomas Eng	0.68	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Aindrila Mukhopadhyay	0.67	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Blake Simmons	0.67	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept
Linqing Luo	0.67	EESA \| EG \| Geophysics Dept
Hector Garcia Martin	0.67	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics
Jennifer Stokes-Draut	0.67	ETA \| Energy Analysis & Env. Impacts \| Sustainable Energy Dept

Potential LBNL PIs (Overall)

Note on PI Matching: These suggestions are generated through an AI-driven semantic analysis of LBNL staff profiles.

Name	Score	Organization
John Dueber	0.77	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept · Synthetic Biology
Banumathi Sankaran	0.76	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Structural Biology Dept · Protein Engineering
Georgios Pavlopoulos	0.76	BSA \| DOE Joint Genome Institute \| JGI Science Dept · AI/ML for Biology
Mohammad Kaazem Pur Mofrad	0.74	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Structural Biology Dept · Biophysical Signal Transduction
Carolyn Larabell	0.74	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Bioenergetics Dept · Quantitative Cellular Analysis
Daniel Fletcher	0.73	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept · Non-Optical Cellular Control
Jamie Inman	0.73	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Department of BioEngineering and BioMedical Sciences · In Vivo System Characterization
Amy Herr	0.73	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics · Cell-Based Therapeutics
Ehud Isacoff	0.72	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Cellular & Tissue Image · Spatiotemporal Protein Control
Hualan Liu	0.72	BSA \| DOE Joint Genome Institute \| JGI Technology Dept · Molecular Tool Development

Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)

Not Mentioned