The Humans of the Wyss (HOW) series features members of the Wyss community discussing their work, the influences that shape them as professionals, and their collaborations at the Wyss Institute and beyond.
As a former pre-professional ballet dancer, Silvi Lybbert knows the value of putting work into small details to create something elegant. At the barre, she would adjust tiny muscle movements, then put it all together into a beautiful performance. As a scientist, she tinkers with variables to assemble a network of DNA sequences that form a genetic circuit, capable of making microbes perform specific tasks. At the Wyss, she’s engineering a microbe to break down plastic waste and use the byproducts to make bioplastics. Learn more about Silvi and her work in this month’s Humans of the Wyss.
What are you working on?
My main focus is a plastic degradation project called SPEEDR, where we’re engineering a single microbe to both break down plastic waste and use the resulting byproducts to make bioplastics. We found an organism that naturally metabolizes plastic breakdown products and makes bioplastics, and we’re engineering it to improve these natural abilities and secrete plastic-degrading enzymes to build a circular plastic economy. We’re turning low-value waste, or trash, into treasure, in this case, bioplastics.
I’m also working on a few other projects, like most people at the Wyss. I’m working on an endometriosis diagnostic project called FemSmaht, a secretion system called FLEX, and helping develop an electrochemical readout for the INSPECTR diagnostic technology.
What real-world problems are these projects solving?
Often when people do enzymatic breakdown of plastic, they purify the enzymes, which is very costly and time-consuming. Alternatively, if they try to use a whole-cell system where bacteria secrete PETases, or enzymes that break down PET plastic, the breakdown products actually inhibit the PETases, so it’s not very efficient. SPEEDR solves this issue by using a microbe that consumes the resulting byproducts, so they don’t get in the way of the PETases.
More broadly, SPEEDR is addressing plastic pollution, which is a huge problem. Plastic doesn’t break down easily and can stay in the environment for hundreds of years, harming the environment, animals, and people in several ways, even some we don’t expect. For example, plastics can act as rafts for pathogens and bacteria with antibiotic-resistance genes. Now, these antibiotic-resistance genes can be found as far away as Antarctica, which has a major impact on human health. More information is also emerging about the harmful effects of microplastics. Breaking down existing plastic and developing bioplastics are both essential.
The diagnostic projects will empower patients and their clinicians to make informed choices to improve their care. Take the FemSmaht project. Right now, the only way to definitively diagnose endometriosis is with surgery, which is invasive. Many women face stigma around discussing their symptoms, or if they do, they often aren’t taken seriously and feel their concerns are dismissed. The FemSmaht team is developing an at-home diagnostic, so patients have an easier, more accessible way to get answers.
What inspired you to get into this field?
I grew up by the ocean in California, and I love nature. So, I’ve always been passionate about the environment. In school, I was interested in so many subjects and wanted to help with so many different issues facing people and the planet. People said I had to focus on becoming an expert in one thing, because otherwise my resume would be too scattered. People would quote the phrase, “a jack of all trades, master of none.” Then, in undergrad, I spoke with my organic chemistry professor, Dr. Hung Pham, and he told me the ending most people don’t know: “but oftentimes better than a master of one.” When I discovered synthetic biology, it was exactly what I was looking for. Synthetic biology lets you take inspiration from Nature and apply knowledge from different areas to build tools with diverse applications, which is really cool. For example, I’ve been able to apply the FLEX secretion platform I’ve helped develop to secrete both cancer cell-killing proteins and plastic-degrading PETases.
What continues to motivate and excite you?
The spiral of ideas that keeps popping up. When I’m playing with one idea, I know there’s another I’ve been waiting to try that’s right around the corner. There’s always something to improve, something to make, something old to use in a new way. That’s exciting.
What are some of the challenges that you face?
When there are so many ideas to test, you have to prioritize which path to take, with the foresight and vision to choose the best avenue. My supervisor, Peter Nguyen, and my Principal Investigator, Jim Collins, are great people to learn from in this area.
When I think about how big the problem is, it just reaffirms that I’m in the right place. The bigger the problem, the bigger the impact will be once we solve it.
Some of the scientific problems we’re trying to solve seem impossible, and the solutions seem almost sci-fi. For example, the idea that a bacterium can make an organic protein in its cell that efficiently breaks down hard plastic outside of the cell. That’s difficult, as enzymatic breakdown is known to be inefficient. But when I think about how big the problem is, it just reaffirms that I’m in the right place. The bigger the problem, the bigger the impact will be once we solve it.
Why did you want to work at the Wyss?
The Wyss’ ability to translate innovations from the lab to the real world is every bioengineer’s hope and dream.
I first learned about the Wyss through work that Nayoung Kim and my now-supervisor, Peter Nguyen, both members of the Collins lab, were doing on using CRISPR technology to diagnose harmful algal blooms in the ocean, a huge problem especially with climate change. Then I read Peter’s Humans of the Wyss interview. I thought my outlook really aligned with his, and it seemed like there were a lot of artistic and creative minds working on big problems here. As I dug deeper, I realized the Wyss’ ability to translate innovations from the lab to the real world is every bioengineer’s hope and dream.
What is unique about the Wyss? How has that impacted your work?
At the Wyss, there’s a will to make things happen, which is possible through the amazing community and our collaborators. As to how it’s impacted my work, I literally wouldn’t be here without that.
At the Wyss, there’s a will to make things happen, which is possible through the amazing community and our collaborators.
I was brought on during a time last year when scientific funding, especially for sustainability research, wasn’t easy to come by. Only through the generosity of Gerstner Philanthropies and the collaborative efforts of everyone at the Wyss who supported me do I have the opportunity to work here. I’m so grateful to Gerstner and the Strategic Engagement Team, led by Jonelle Prill-Tate, along with Peter, Jim Niemi, and everyone in the Collins Lab who made it happen. This has genuinely changed the trajectory of my research career and inspired me.
How do you collaborate with and/or receive support from other teams across the Institute?
Because we’re so close to other faculty labs and can share our research, it’s easy to be inspired. For example, Sandy Elmehrath from David Mooney’s lab heard about our diagnostic technology and reached out with the idea of applying it to endometriosis. That’s how the FemSmaht project was born. Peter and Sandy are spearheading a new collaboration involving four Wyss faculty members, harnessing all of our expertise to develop a diagnostic for fetal hypoxia.
The Sustainable Futures Initiative and the Women’s Health Catalyst bring people together who are passionate about moving those fields forward. It’s excellent to have the opportunity to learn from so many people.
Then, on a simpler level, anytime I need to use another piece of equipment or go to another lab, everyone is so supportive and open to sharing their knowledge and supplies. I’ve learned so many tips, tricks, and techniques from other people. Small talk turns into troubleshooting each other’s problems, and jokes about ridiculous ideas turn into reality. I always leave conversations feeling inspired.
How have your previous work and personal experiences shaped your approach to your work today?
Before college, I did ballet pre-professionally. I loved that you had to think about all of these muscles and corrections at once with the goal of making something look easy and elegant. I find the contradiction between the work that is put in to make something look effortless really beautiful. It is something I see in the world, and something I love about science. I’m editing microbes’ DNA sequences to make them eat plastic, creating genetic circuits that I often have to scratch, scramble, and redo. But then I stand up at a lab meeting and say, “My microbe eats plastic.” In both ballet and science, I’m working through something that’s very complicated, tedious, and detail-oriented to display a clear final product. I see a similar quality in Nature. When you look at a wave, you notice its beauty before you think about the mathematics behind its motion. As humans, we first take in a whole scene before focusing on the little, hidden specifics.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I like to read, paint, walk around appreciating nature, and speak with people about their perspectives on random topics, like black holes or chimneys. I enjoy fiction most, especially the classics and science fiction. It’s hard to select a favorite, but right now I’m really enjoying “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and “The Three-Body Problem.” I recently collaborated with my supervisor Peter on a watercolor painting illustrating our work, which is being displayed at the Institute as part of the Visions of the Wyss 2026 Image Contest. Every so often, I also take classes with the Boston Ballet.
What is something unique or fun about you that someone wouldn’t know from your resume?
I’m obsessed with bioluminescence. In California, there were these blooms of marine plankton that emit an incredible neon blue light after being disturbed by movement, for example, from crashing waves or sea creatures. While swimming in it at night, I saw each of my strokes glow this surreal blue color against the obsidian black sea beneath. Once, it began to rain while I was swimming in it, and the droplets sparkled blue against the ocean surface. Another of my favorite memories is being at the beach one night with my friend and lying on the wet sand with towels over our heads to block any other light, staring at the sand as it glittered with these dinoflagellates. It was like looking at a galaxy. Even away from the ocean, there’s beauty in observing nature at night. I find that if you go into a wooded area at night, while being safe and aware of your surroundings, since you cannot see much, you can open your other senses to feel the wind and hear the trees.
If you had to choose an entirely different career path, what would it be?
An astrophysicist. I love physics; I tutored physics in college. I also like philosophy. I think astrophysics is a perfect blend of the two. Or, if I had the skills, I’d love to be an underwater archaeologist or a National Geographic underwater photographer in Antarctica.
What does it feel like to be working on cutting-edge technology that has the potential to have a real and significant impact on people’s lives and society?
As cliché as it sounds, I grew up just wanting to help people in the world. So even if all of my projects failed, I’d feel lucky to be in a position where I can at least try to contribute. Seeing experiments go well or projects advance is even more rewarding.
It’s such a privilege to be in a position where I have the potential to make that kind of impact. As cliché as it sounds, I grew up just wanting to help people in the world. So even if all of my projects failed, I’d feel lucky to be in a position where I can at least try to contribute. Seeing experiments go well or projects advance is even more rewarding.
