Extreme Genetic Engineering: ETC Group Releases Report on Synthetic Biology

[nosmokes]

original-etcgroup

***News Release***
ETC Group
January 16, 2007


Extreme Genetic Engineering: ETC Group Releases Report on Synthetic Biology


Findings to be presented at World Social Forum in Nairobi - 20-25 January

A new report by the ETC Group concludes that the social, environmental and bio-weapons threats of synthetic biology surpass the possible dangers and abuses of biotech. The full text of the 70-page report, Extreme Genetic Engineering: An Introduction to Synthetic Biology, is available for downloading free-of-charge on the ETC Group website: Extreme Genetic Engineering

"Genetic engineering is passé," said Pat Mooney, Executive Director of ETC Group. "Today, scientists aren't just mapping genomes and manipulating genes, they're building life from scratch - and they're doing it in the absence of societal debate and regulatory oversight," said Mooney.

Synbio - dubbed "genetic engineering on steroids" - is inspired by the convergence of nano-scale biology, computing and engineering. Using a laptop computer, published gene sequence information and mail-order synthetic DNA, just about anyone has the potential to construct genes or entire genomes from scratch (including those of lethal pathogens). Scientists predict that within 2-5 years it will be possible to synthesise any virus; the first de novo bacterium will make its debut in 2007; in 5-10 years simple bacterial genomes will be synthesised routinely and it will become no big deal to cobble together a designer genome, insert it into an empty bacterial cell and - voilà - give birth to a living, self-replicating organism. Other synthetic biologists hope to reconfigure the genetic pathways of existing organisms to perform new functions - such as manufacturing high-value drugs or chemicals.

A clutch of entrepreneurial scientists, including the gene maverick J. Craig Venter, is setting up synthetic biology companies backed by government funding and venture capital. They aim to commercialise new biological parts, devices and systems that don't exist in the natural world - some of which are designed for environmental release. Advocates insist that synthetic biology is the key to cheap biofuels, a cure for malaria, and climate change remediation - media-friendly goals that aim to mollify public concerns about a dangerous and controversial technology. Ultimately synthetic biology means cheaper and widely accessible tools to build bioweapons, virulent pathogens and artificial organisms that could pose grave threats to people and the planet. The danger is not just bio-terror, but "bio-error," warns ETC Group.

Despite calls for open source biology, corporate and academic scientists are winning exclusive monopoly patents on the products and processes of synthetic genetics. Like biotech, the power to make synthetic life could be concentrated in the hands of major multinational firms. As gene synthesis becomes cheaper and faster, it will become easier to synthesise a microbe than to find it in nature or retrieve it from a gene bank. Biological samples, sequenced and stored in digital form, will move instantaneously across the globe and be resurrected in corporate labs thousands of miles away - a practice that could erode future support for genetic conservation and create new challenges for international negotiations on biodiversity.

"Last year, 38 civil society organizations rejected proposals for self-regulation of synthetic biology put forth by a small group of synthetic biologists," said Kathy Jo Wetter of ETC Group. "Widespread debate on the social, economic and ethical implications of synbio must come first - and it must not be limited to biosecurity and biosafety issues," said Wetter.

The tools for synthesising genes and genomes are widely accessible and advancing at break-neck pace. ETC Group's new report concludes that it is not enough to regulate synthetic biology on the national level. Decisions must be considered in a global context, with broad participation from civil society and social movements. In keeping with the Precautionary Principle, ETC Group asserts that - at a minimum - there must be an immediate ban on environmental release of de novo synthetic organisms until wide societal debate and strong governance are in place.

For further information about the report on Synthetic Biology, please contact:

Hope Shand or Kathy Jo Wetter, ETC Group
[e-mail] [phone]
[e-mail] [phone]
Silvia Ribeiro
[e-mail] + 52 5555 6326 64




















for link to complete report in pdf go here

[TZ]

1. synthetic biology?

I am a biological lab tech in the biotech industry and I have never heard that terminology before..its an oxymoron really. Yes there is all sorts of genetic engineering and nanotech coming along but that piece you posted seems to be very inflammatory and uninformed really. There is a lot of stuff done on a routine basis that if not explained properly sounds pretty scary. Take gene therapy: you are inserting a piece of bacterial DNA into a human cell to allow that cell to produce an enzyme that is missing and causing a disease. If you want to scare people you can say "they making human/bacteria hybrids! Technically true but inflammatory. I have heard Bush say stuff like this in the past (one of his State of the Union addresses talked about human/rodent hybrids...when he was trying to scare people about cloning). I just wish people would be very careful when posting info like this. Biotechnology is NOT a bunch of mad scientists running around seeing what Frankenstein monster they can produce. I am not saying there is not bad or questionable research going on. But frankly it often is blown WAY WAY WAY out of proportion and then someone like Bush or his Fundie friends get a hold of it and say see- these scientists are all evil and immoral and must be stopped at all costs. This is what happened with both cloning and stem cell research...

[nosmokes]

2. download the PDF and chew on that for a while.

meanwhile i freely admit that much of it is way over my head.

as for other biotech stuff, lemme just say that i have no use for transgenics when it comes to our food supply. there has been far too much monkeying about and open air field testing w/o anywhere near enough research done on the safety either to humans or the environment. see my recent post regarding corn pests. all sorts of money has been invested by the government so that private corps can end up owning patents to food sources and farmers won't even be allowed to save seed. it's not right, on a moral or ethical basis, especially when we're in a time of global warming/climate change. every thing i've read shows that GMOs require even more petro based materials than conventional crops which require wway more than organic which are more than capable of feeding us all and are better suited for sustaining us through droughts and other extremes. so why isn't the money going there? why aren't we spending on appropriate technology?