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Team:British Columbia/Wild
From 2011.igem.org
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Synthetic biologists have very grand visions of what their creations can do. We want organisms that can clean up oil spills and non‐biodegradable garbage, fix the ozone layer, fertilize barren land and purify contaminated water, synthesize copious amounts of bio‐fuels and other compounds at low cost, valiantly beat down untreatable illnesses, and encode yotta‐bytes of encrypted data. These organisms must not only perform these functions infallibly, but also adhere strictly to bio‐safety and bio‐security restrictions. We want them to do what they are supposed to do and stay where they are supposed to stay. | Synthetic biologists have very grand visions of what their creations can do. We want organisms that can clean up oil spills and non‐biodegradable garbage, fix the ozone layer, fertilize barren land and purify contaminated water, synthesize copious amounts of bio‐fuels and other compounds at low cost, valiantly beat down untreatable illnesses, and encode yotta‐bytes of encrypted data. These organisms must not only perform these functions infallibly, but also adhere strictly to bio‐safety and bio‐security restrictions. We want them to do what they are supposed to do and stay where they are supposed to stay. | ||
| - | While these expectations may be realizable in laboratory or industrial settings, it becomes exceedingly difficult to design, model and validate synthetic organisms intended for release into open spaces such as nature or the human environment. So our questions are ( | + | While these expectations may be realizable in laboratory or industrial settings, it becomes exceedingly difficult to design, model and validate synthetic organisms intended for release into open spaces such as nature or the human environment. So our questions are [[(1) Will synthetic organisms ever be released into the open?]] [[(2) What extent of pre‐emptive measures is required before this can happen?]] [[(3) Does everyone need to agree?]] Investors, consumers, environmentalists, governments, communities, educators, scientists, churches and the marginalized? The informed and the uninformed? |
'''Our short discourse "Synthetic Biology in the Open: Pipe dream or the next giant leap for mankind?" can be <html><a href="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2011/4/45/Ubcigem2011syntheticbiologyintheopen.pdf">downloaded</a></html> or found on <html><a href="http://openwetware.org/wiki/IGEM_Outreach:Synthetic_Biology_in_the_Open">this CommunityBricks page</a></html>.''' | '''Our short discourse "Synthetic Biology in the Open: Pipe dream or the next giant leap for mankind?" can be <html><a href="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2011/4/45/Ubcigem2011syntheticbiologyintheopen.pdf">downloaded</a></html> or found on <html><a href="http://openwetware.org/wiki/IGEM_Outreach:Synthetic_Biology_in_the_Open">this CommunityBricks page</a></html>.''' | ||
Revision as of 17:51, 21 October 2011
Initiating a Dialogue on Synthetic Biology in the Open
“What does synthetic biology mean to you?” “You mean, like, Jurassic Park?”This was one of our favourite responses when we surveyed hundreds of undergraduate students for their definition of “Synthetic Biology”. When people think of synthetic biology, do they imagine something unnatural, belonging to a different time, a beautiful and marvellous human achievement but dangerous to the world as we know it? Is synthetic biology a futuristic dinosaur that needs to be isolated on an island?
Synthetic biologists have very grand visions of what their creations can do. We want organisms that can clean up oil spills and non‐biodegradable garbage, fix the ozone layer, fertilize barren land and purify contaminated water, synthesize copious amounts of bio‐fuels and other compounds at low cost, valiantly beat down untreatable illnesses, and encode yotta‐bytes of encrypted data. These organisms must not only perform these functions infallibly, but also adhere strictly to bio‐safety and bio‐security restrictions. We want them to do what they are supposed to do and stay where they are supposed to stay.
While these expectations may be realizable in laboratory or industrial settings, it becomes exceedingly difficult to design, model and validate synthetic organisms intended for release into open spaces such as nature or the human environment. So our questions are (1) Will synthetic organisms ever be released into the open? (2) What extent of pre‐emptive measures is required before this can happen? (3) Does everyone need to agree? Investors, consumers, environmentalists, governments, communities, educators, scientists, churches and the marginalized? The informed and the uninformed?
Our short discourse "Synthetic Biology in the Open: Pipe dream or the next giant leap for mankind?" can be downloaded or found on this CommunityBricks page.
Expert Opinions on Synthetic Biology Gone Wild
To grasp the attitudes toward releasing synthetic biology in the wild, we contacted and interviewed experts in various fields. Here are the 5 core questions we asked:
1. Do you think synthetic organisms should be released into the wild?
2. What standards would you recommend for their release?
3. What challenges are there in terms of attaining public acceptance?
4. What future directions do you see for synthetic biology?
5. Do you think we should be rewriting the code of life?
Interview Transcripts
Dr. Allan Carroll Associate Professor, UBC Department of Forest Sciences, Insect ecologist
Dr. Julian Davies Distinguished Professor Emeritus, UBC Microbiology and Immunology department
Dr. Andre Marziali Director of Engineering Physics, Associate Professor, Biophysics Associate, UBC, MSL, GenomeBC Technology Development Platform Director
Dr. Andrew Riseman Associate Professor, Applied Biology and Plant Breeding
Dr. Hennie J. J. van Vuuren Professor and Eagles Chair in Food Biotechnology, Wine Research Centre Director, Associate Member, Michael Smith Laboratories
