NPR - synthetic DNA working in living cells - check it out...

www.npr.org For the first time, scientists have synthesized DNA in the lab, put it into a cell, which is now growing and multiplying. This means that we're one step closer to creating life. But some bioethicists are asking: Are we playing God? And what happens if artificial organisms leave the lab?


http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127010591&...

What does this portend?

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Permalink Reply by Jaume on May 20, 2010 at 3:01pm
"Now we only need to synthetize a soul to save these cells from eternal damnation."
Permalink Reply by Howard S. Dunn on May 20, 2010 at 4:42pm
THAT definitely tickled me. Bravo, mon ami - tres drole.
Permalink Reply by Dave Rogers on May 20, 2010 at 3:43pm
Are we playing God?

I laugh whenever I hear this question.

If they were playing God, absolutely nothing would be happening.
Permalink Reply by Jaume on May 20, 2010 at 4:28pm
Are you sure? Beware of theistic cells!
Permalink Reply by Goz on May 21, 2010 at 9:08am
Love that! I can just see a scientist above that saying holding a test tube as a t shirt design.
Permalink Reply by Howard S. Dunn on May 20, 2010 at 4:43pm
A - I pasted the blurb BTW - I was mostly interested in what people think about the breakthrough and what it might prove and what it might lead to. Also, 'playing god' can be used metaphorically - as in the valid questions posed in MS's Frankenstein.
Permalink Reply by Secular Forces 2013 on May 20, 2010 at 5:25pm
Permalink Reply by Roy The Infidel on May 20, 2010 at 8:29pm
Why am I not surprised it's Craig Venter?

I added a video (when I first joined A|N) where Venter takes Richard Dawkins to a tour in his lab facility.

Playing god? Well, somebody's gotta do it. Like it or not, in the future we are the gods.
Permalink Reply by Stephen Moore on May 21, 2010 at 11:02am
From the NPR article: "Up until now, organisms have come into being on their own, as it were; they've evolved on their own," Kaebnick says.

Not entirely true. Canis lupis familiaris, Felis silvestris catus, Bos primagenius taurus and B. p. indicus, and Ovis aries aries are just a few species that evolved as a result of human intervention, which is to say, not on their own.

It is a great technological achievement, but it's basically an extension of what Homo sapiens sapiens have been doing for 10,000+ years. Sophisticated Knowledge + Sophisticated Tools = Sophisticated Outcomes.

Are we playing God?

"Playing God" a moronic idea that holds humanity back. Any species able to manipulate it's environment to it's advantage (even if in the long term it turns out to be a disadvantage) will do so. We human beings are no different. Of course there are ethical concerns which ought be considered, but that's a separate issue. If there is a legitimate concern about 'playing God', then we may as well abandon medicine.

And what happens if artificial organisms leave the lab?

Anything from the organism dying because it can not survive 'in the wild', to a major pandemic that kills off 98% of the human population. The organism could even do what it was designed to do, and only that. But that's what biohazard protections are all about: systems and procedures together with containment facilities to study the organism. We're not all running scared because Smallpox, Anthrax, Ebola or any other deadly organism being studied might leave the lab that's just down the street.
Permalink Reply by Dylan Michael McFarland on October 17, 2010 at 2:23am
What will happen? It's the exact same species that already exists. The only difference is the origin of the DNA. Nothing will happen.
Permalink Reply by Daniel on October 17, 2010 at 2:48am
Not a lot of love for the bioethics, eh?

>What does this portend?

I'll go devils advocate on this one. Bio terror and another weapons race.

Military funding says offensive capability comes first, maybe a Bin Laden targeting virus?
Permalink Reply by Super fluid on November 26, 2010 at 2:56pm
What Venter has done is somewhat interesting, technically, to biology nerds like myself, but it is of very little consequence. At least, it doesn't quite live up to the hype attributed to it by the news coverage. Best case scenario, this type of synth-bio work will lead to new chassis for other synth-bio/genetic engineering work, replacing E. coli as the de facto model. If anyone is interested in the other side of synthetic biology I recommend checking out iGem's website. It is a undergraduate synthetic biology competition held annually at MIT. Read through the past years abstracts, cool stuff. Something else, all of the biobrick's created by teams are opensource and freely available, even to home enthusiasts, yup they're out there. Opensource is decidedly NOT Venter's style.

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