Glowing Bacteria May One Day Protect People From Land Mines

Researchers in Israel have recently detailed progress in developing sensors that light up in the presence of a chemical linked to deadly explosives.

Land mines left over from bygone conflicts — or those still being fought — pose silent threats to millions of people around the world. With the help of bacteria that glow in their presence, these hidden hazards may one day be found and safely removed or destroyed. Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have spent a decade developing living land mine sensors using E. coli bacteria. In recent studies, they describe their latest progress. By using genetic engineering, they can turn each bacterium into “a miniature firefly” in the presence of a chemical associated with the explosives, said Shimshon Belkin, the Hebrew University microbiologist leading the research. In 2019, more than 5,500 people were killed or injured by land mines and explosive remnants of war, and 80 percent of them were civilians, according to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Anti-personnel land mines, which can be only a few inches across and easily concealed, are especially dangerous. Estimates vary for the worldwide count of buried land mines, but they are as high as 110 million.