Team:Peking S/project/hp

Human Practice

Introduction|Synthetic Biology vs. Genetically Modified Organism|Public Investigation|Risks and Measurements Analysis |Acknowledgement&Reference

Introduction

Synthetic biology is broadly defined as the area of intersection of biology and engineering that focuses on the modification or creation of novel biological systems that do not have a counterpart in nature[1]. As a emerging method, its potential applications range from tools for environmental protection to proof for medical treatment.

However, it gives rise to amounts of challenges along different dimensions. With the potential to produce unknown “living organism”, the work of synthetic biology is believed to raise application and ethic problems that genetically modified organisms have. In the human practice of Peking_S team this year, we reviewed previous documentation relevant to the development of synthetic biology, trying to answer following questions:

1. What is the general cognition towards synthetic biology and GMO of high school students and college students?

2. What are the difference between synthetic biology and GMO?

3. What are the potential risks posed by synthetic biology?

4. What measures and attitude should we take when facing these problems?

Here, we review the analysis of principles to guide the development of synthetic biology and provide recommendations to improve our work.