Self-repair (work in progress)
Laboratory. 2017-2018
n number of participants

Concept Contributions Contact


Contributions

Lichen biohacking: revealing the secrets of the forgotten part of the 
forgotten kingdom
Workshop led by Technarium team: Eglė Marija Ramanauskaitė and Simona 
Bekeraitė aka Opit

Lichens are great symbiotic organisms, able to survive the most hostile 
conditions and forming the basis of the ecosystems in which other 
organisms are unable to grow. Lichens grow very slowly; some of their 
species are known as one of the oldest organisms on Earth. 
Unfortunately, lichens are yet largely understudied by scientists and 
misunderstood by the public. Molecular features of lichens are of 
particular importance due to their specific growing conditions and the 
variety of species - what mechanisms and materials influence lichen 
"longevity"? Can we use such mechanisms for ourselves, for example, 
solving the crisis of antibiotics. During this lichen biohacking 
workshop different types of DNA will be analysed aiming to uncover this 
underestimated source of useful information.