From gene editing to cell editing: An emerging technology for synthetic biology

With the rapid advancement of synthetic biology, there is a growing need to engineer increasingly complex genetic traits involving multiple, poorly understood genetic networks or functions. However, current gene-editing technologies in synthetic biology remain applicable only to relatively well-understood and simple metabolic pathways. Here, we propose cell editing—a technology inspired by endosymbiosis—for implementing complex functions into a host chassis that are currently difficult or impossible to achieve. Interkindom endosymbiosis, evolving at different stages, are widespread in nature. Understanding the principles of endosymbiosis can therefore provide a critical blueprint for cell editing. This foundational approach leverages engineered symbiotic interactions to reprogram cellular functions. Through rational design of engineered donor cells (or “functional shuttles”) combined with laboratory adaptive evolution, cell editing aims to achieve radical cellular reprogramming—including trophic shift, reconstruction of core energy metabolism, and even de novo functional compartmentalization. Ultimately, this endosymbiotic framework has the potential to pioneer new directions in synthetic biology and cell engineering, enabling modular acquisition of complex traits beyond the reach of current gene-editing tools.