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Photosynthetic humans

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Ashenafi Kiflu
Ashenafi Kiflu

This document discusses various approaches to enabling human photosynthesis: 1. Transferring genes from plants and cyanobacteria that code for chloroplast functions, allowing the artificial chloroplast to function in human skin and harness sunlight for energy through exposure. 2. Incorporating genes from a sea slug, Elysia chlorotica, that can photosynthesize by stealing chloroplasts from algae and manufacturing chlorophyll. 3. Genetically modifying the melanin in human skin to potentially produce chemical energy in the form of ATP from sunlight, similar to how chlorophyll functions for plants and melanin functions for other animals. However, there are bottlenecks such as insufficient research, energy requirements, ethical concerns,

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Photo-synthetic Humans Ashenafi Kiflu
Challenges of the future.. ?Desertification ?Climate change ?Higher Co2 level ?Population increase
Photosynthetic humans
Hijacking the photosynthetic pathway to humans : 1. Transfer of Genes that code for the chloroplast function from plants 2. Transfer of Genes obtained from solar powered sea slugs / cyanobacteria E.g. Elysia chlorotica 3. Genetic Modification of melanin
1. Chloroplast Engineering
Light is the most important factor
1. Chloroplast Engineering.. ? Requires ? The artificial chloroplast function in human skin ? Exposure to sun light (The average human being has 1.8m2 of skin, approximately half of which would be exposed to the sun!)
? In photosynthesis, sunlight is captured and transported by highly specialised antenna proteins. ? Not necessarily green light! ? Chloroplast genes can be identified and transferred to the human skin continuously.
2. Genes from Elysia chlorotica ? lives in waters on the east coast of the USA and Canada ? is known to steal genes and photosynthesizing organelles called chloroplasts ? has developed an entire chemical pathway to manufacture the green pigment "chlorophyll" itself. ? Eats the algae, Vaucheria algae , just for once only and supplies the chlorophyll and other chemicals used in photosynthesis. Read more at: http://phys.org/182501672.html#jCp
3. Genetic Modification of melanin ?Melanin is just like chlorophyll to the animal kingdom ?Melanin is a pigment found in most organisms. ? In humans, melanin is the primary determinant of skin color. It is also found in hair ?Melanocytes of human skin could be engineered to produce another pigment, causing the skin to take on a different colour.
3. Melanin Can we form chemical energy in the form of ATP?
Bottle necks ?Insufficient studies ?The need of water ?Energy requirement ?Exposure of the skin ?Ethical reasons
? Hira Ratan Manek was born in 1937 and grew up in Kerala, India, getting his Mechanical Engineering degree from the University of Kerala. After graduation, he joined the family business, which was shipping and spice trading, and continued working there until he retired in 1992. After he retired, he began to study sun gazing, particularly the teachings of Lord Mahavir of the Jains, who practiced this method two thousand six hundred years ago. Since June 1995 HRM has lived on sun energy, water and the occasional cup of tea or buttermilk "for social purposes." ? He stopped eating solid food in 1995 and have baffled the doctors and scientists who have studied him during fasts of 211 and 411 days. How did he manage to do it? ? This is an ancient practice based on logic and modern biological science that relies on water and sunlight for energy. This is really photosynthesis taking place in the human body, Hira Ratan;
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Photosynthetic humans

  • 2. Challenges of the future.. ?Desertification ?Climate change ?Higher Co2 level ?Population increase
  • 4. Hijacking the photosynthetic pathway to humans : 1. Transfer of Genes that code for the chloroplast function from plants 2. Transfer of Genes obtained from solar powered sea slugs / cyanobacteria E.g. Elysia chlorotica 3. Genetic Modification of melanin
  • 6. Light is the most important factor
  • 7. 1. Chloroplast Engineering.. ? Requires ? The artificial chloroplast function in human skin ? Exposure to sun light (The average human being has 1.8m2 of skin, approximately half of which would be exposed to the sun!)
  • 8. ? In photosynthesis, sunlight is captured and transported by highly specialised antenna proteins. ? Not necessarily green light! ? Chloroplast genes can be identified and transferred to the human skin continuously.
  • 9. 2. Genes from Elysia chlorotica ? lives in waters on the east coast of the USA and Canada ? is known to steal genes and photosynthesizing organelles called chloroplasts ? has developed an entire chemical pathway to manufacture the green pigment "chlorophyll" itself. ? Eats the algae, Vaucheria algae , just for once only and supplies the chlorophyll and other chemicals used in photosynthesis. Read more at: http://phys.org/182501672.html#jCp
  • 10. 3. Genetic Modification of melanin ?Melanin is just like chlorophyll to the animal kingdom ?Melanin is a pigment found in most organisms. ? In humans, melanin is the primary determinant of skin color. It is also found in hair ?Melanocytes of human skin could be engineered to produce another pigment, causing the skin to take on a different colour.
  • 11. 3. Melanin Can we form chemical energy in the form of ATP?
  • 12. Bottle necks ?Insufficient studies ?The need of water ?Energy requirement ?Exposure of the skin ?Ethical reasons
  • 13. ? Hira Ratan Manek was born in 1937 and grew up in Kerala, India, getting his Mechanical Engineering degree from the University of Kerala. After graduation, he joined the family business, which was shipping and spice trading, and continued working there until he retired in 1992. After he retired, he began to study sun gazing, particularly the teachings of Lord Mahavir of the Jains, who practiced this method two thousand six hundred years ago. Since June 1995 HRM has lived on sun energy, water and the occasional cup of tea or buttermilk "for social purposes." ? He stopped eating solid food in 1995 and have baffled the doctors and scientists who have studied him during fasts of 211 and 411 days. How did he manage to do it? ? This is an ancient practice based on logic and modern biological science that relies on water and sunlight for energy. This is really photosynthesis taking place in the human body, Hira Ratan;