Richardson, S.M. et al. Science 355, 1040–1044 (2017).

The project to modify and synthesize the entire genome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, known as Sc2.0, is a global collaboration with labs in different countries assigned to the synthesis, assembly and debugging of the sixteen chromosomes of S. cerevisae. Richardson et al. now report the completion of the design of the entire genome, including the removal of repetitive DNA, the introduction of loxP sites to allow scrambling of loci, and the introduction of rare restriction sites to facilitate the swapping-in of segments. To date, over a third of Sc2.0 chromosomes have been built in discreet strains, and the consortium is working on combining them into a single strain. Sc2.0 will not only answer questions about chromosome structure and function, but it will also be the basis for new designs.