A nascent industry has formed around the ability to carry out biochemical processes, such as DNA transcription/translation, in cell-free in-vitro systems instead of in traditional cell-based in-vivo bio-reactors. This approach has a number of potential advantages, including rapid turn-around, distributed and highly retargetable manufacturing, high-fidelity instrumentation and control of the manufacturing environments – without the constraints of biological growth and the interference caused by cell biomass and cell membranes during product purification. Furthermore, cell-free systems can produce products that are challenging to manufacture in cell-based cultures, such as those inherently toxic to cells or hydrocarbon products that are consumed by the cellular machinery.

Despite these advantages, present-day cell-free manufacturing is significantly more expensive than cell-based methods and cell-free systems have a limited range of applications.

CFIRE aims to:

1. Reduce the cost of cell-free systems;

2. Increase the range and capabilities of cell-free systems; and

3. Develop and demonstrate cost-effective use-inspired applications.