Synthetic biology
Synthetic biology is "extreme genetic engineering". A broad coalition of 111 organisations world-wide in March 2012 released The Principles for the Oversight of Synthetic Biology - to govern synthetic organisms and their products, to protect public health and the environment, and to meet economic, social and ethical goals. The coalition calls for a moratorium. SynBio not only cuts and pastes genes but also writes genetic code to create new genes, genetic traits and new life forms from scratch.
Global Citizens Declaration calls for precaution on synthetic biology
Synthetic biology is "extreme genetic engineering". A broad coalition of 111 organisations world-wide has released The Principles for the Oversight of Synthetic Biology - to govern synthetic organisms and their products, to protect public health and the environment, and to meet economic, social and ethical goals. The coalition calls for a moratorium. SynBio not only cuts and pastes genes but also writes genetic code to create new genes, genetic traits and new life forms from scratch.
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Radio Australia investigation: The ethics of inventing new life with synthetic biology
Those in favour of the technology say it offers solutions to everything from fuel shortages to a cure for malaria, and those against say it's playing god and is a very dangerous path to be going down.
Robert Speight, Business Manager at Queensland University's Systems and Synthetic Biology Group, Dr Matthew Rimmer from the ANU College of Law and Bob Phelps Executive Director of Gene Ethics join Phil Kafcaloudes for an exploration of the issues.
Listen to the podcast at this link
Fidelity Investments promos on YouTube
Synthetic biology promo on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xArETjua30 2.26min) and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpVymZsUVfs&feature=relmfu (30 second summary)
Synthetic biology is a set of radical new genetic manipulation (GM) techniques, to use Nature as a “manufacturing platform” and DNA as patentable raw material. Craig Venter recently created the first synthetic microbe ever built from scratch. Now Fidelity Investments see more new life forms being created in the lab than the 1.7 million organisms found in Nature. Their lego view of the world sees life as ‘biobricks’. They conclude, “Nothing has the power to change how we live more than changing life itself.”
The failed promises of existing GM techniques – e.g. goat milk with spider silk, bigger fish and anti-malarial drugs – are the basis for claims that SynBio is just an extension of GM, so relax. Nothing is further from the truth.
Synthetic biology-playing lego with life
Comprehensive yet concise article by Bob Phelps and Cregory Crocetti, published April 2012
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