# Provenance attestation of human cells using physical unclonable functions

> **NIH NIH R41** · SYNTAXISBIO, INC. · 2022 · $361,552

## Abstract

Project Summary
The use of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) technologies has spurred myriads
of applications critically relevant
to human health and, pertinent to the topic of this project, an ecosystem of
companies, universities, and governmental laboratories that either offer or are in need of custom CRISPR-based
cell line engineering has started to emerge. Foreseeably, in the near future, for each cell line model there will exist
hundreds of customized versions, each requiring research and development investment on behalf of the producer
and constituting a valuable asset on behalf of the user.
Considering the significance of the medical and biomedical applications wherein such cell lines are used, as well
as the importance of ensuring accuracy and reproducibility of the corresponding results, this ecosystem could
benefit from mechanisms which can protect the intellectual property associated with the production of custom
engineered cell lines and can ensure their quality. Unfortunately, effective cell line provenance attestation
solutions are not currently available in this ecosystem. Besides limiting the ability of cell line producers to
capitalize on their investment, lack of such solutions also results in numerous cell line issues including cross-
contamination, misidentification, and procurement from dubious or undocumented sources, which in turn
undermine robustness, repeatability and, ultimately, overall efficiency of medical research.
To fill this void, herein we focus on one of the most fundamental security primitives which can support integrity
and accountability of cell line procurement, namely the ability to associate a unique, robust and unclonable
identifier with each transacted product. Herein, SyntaxisBio and its research partner The University of Texas
at Dallas (UTD) aim to develop and validate a technology that will enable provenance attestation protocols to
introduce accountability in cell line distribution networks. The
patent-pending technology termed genetic
Physical Unclonable Functions (PUFs) was recently developed in UTD (to appear in Science Advances) and is
used to introduce a unique, robust and unclonable identifier in cells.
We posit that genetic PUFs can enable a provenance attestation protocol which can be used not only for protecting
the intellectual property of a cell line producer but also for bolstering the confidence of a customer in the source
and, thereby, the quality of a procured cell line. Specifically, the genetic PUF technology enables the producer of
a valuable cell line to insert a unique, robust and unclonable signature in each legitimately produced and
authenticated copy of a cell line. The producer of the cell line can ensure that anyone who publicly claims
ownership or usage of a copy of this cell line has acquired it legitimately. At the same time, the user of the cell
line can be assured of its source and quality, as the producer explicitly confirms its origin ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10603174
- **Project number:** 1R41HG012884-01
- **Recipient organization:** SYNTAXISBIO, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** ALEXANDER PERTSEMLIDIS
- **Activity code:** R41 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $361,552
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-19 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10603174

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10603174, Provenance attestation of human cells using physical unclonable functions (1R41HG012884-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10603174. Licensed CC0.

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