Gene-editing boosts air-cleaning ability of common houseplant

In Paris, Neoplants has genetically engineered the common pothos to have 30 times the air-purifying ability of a regular houseplant.

Dubbed Neo P1, the pothos was conceived by Neoplants while the startup resided at the Station F incubator.  “We were surrounded by houseplants in this incubator,” Neoplants cofounder and CTO Patrick Torbey tells Fast Company. “Looking at them, we were starting to think, what would be the most powerful function we could give to that organism?”

Air purifiers are effective at removing particulate matter from indoor environments but can’t capture volatile organic compounds. NASA has previously suggested houseplants could theoretically be used to purify air, but in practice the removal rates are low.

“Our main challenge . . . was to increase the remediation of a plant by something like 20 or 30 times, which is not trivial,” says Torbey. Neo P1 converts formaldehyde into fructose for food. The plant converts other VOCs, like benzene and toluene, into amino acids for use in generating proteins.

The plant is sold on Neoplants’ website for $179, which includes a bioplastic planter and water tank.

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