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Ethics

Ethics is an important issue to think about, especially when we are considering working with toxic materials and modifying a life form. The iGEM2009 Newcastle team participated at an ethics brainstorming exercise at the iGEM-UK meeting at Edinburgh on the 24th of June 2009. Here are the main points that came out of this exercise:

Ethical, Legal, Social Aspects of Synthetic Biology — Brainstorming exercise

What can engineering bring to biology?

• Further understanding of systems that are not understood
• Make useful organisms (e.g. electricity) [?]
• Make standards (+tick)
• Prediction/verification tools (+tick)
• Make biology more powerful, maybe uncontrollable
• Feedback – design & modelling
• Maths
• Callout charges. Help desks. Linux.
• Predictable outcomes
• Unrealistic expectations (+tick)
• A creative process
• Objective overview of the system
• Optimization
• The design process
• Problems/misunderstandings
• Mindset focusing on solving problems instead of gaining knowledge
• Solutions ☺
• Complex designs
• Innovation
• Mass production
• Bioart

What features of biology could be exploited by synthetic biology ?

• Adapts
• Replication
• Species homology
• Communication
• Exploits standard parts within and between species ?
• Can create a feature in a bug by using/mixing parts from other species
• Synthetic organisms (e.g. plants) might outcompete wildtype ones
• Exponential growth
• System regulation
• Self-preservation instinct
• Mini-elephants & purple kittens
• Molecular recognition
• Self-assembly
• Parallel processing
• Evolution
• Precise (molecular) control systems
• Dinosaurs
• Targeted solutions (e.g. to solve growing antibiotic resistance)
• Stochasticity
• Natural instinct to live
• Neuroscience principles (e.g. neural networks)
• Harnessing biological reactions that chemistry cannot yet accomplish

What kinds of applications could you imagine for synthetic biology in 50 years’ time?

• Medical:
• Vaccines
• Transplantation /stem cells / making organs
• Pushing human physical/mental abilities to new levels
• Release of drugs by bacteria / enzymes by failed organs?
• Destruction of malignant cells
• No more ageing of humans. Eternal life?
• A cure for flatulence
• Personal activatable fluorescence
• Biocomputing [linked to]
• [linked with] living systems
• Oxygen producing bugs
• Outer space colonization [linked to]
• [linked with] air recyclers + waste recyclers
• Terraforming [with comment ‘Yes! ☺’]
• Biofuels + biofuel cells
• Biocomputers
• Bio-diagnosers
• Pets with logos
• Superbugs!
• Improved desalinisation
• Houses grown from seeds
• Artificial immune system
• ‘super’ humans with more abilities?
• Art
• Food production
• Anti-ageing. Anti-wrinkle. No more botox
• Sleep button on kids
• Remote control wake-up button for students
• Military applications? (with funny face :|)
• Dinosaurs!
• Synthetic biology diseases [?]

What broader social challenges or questions face the synthetic biology community?

• Public understanding of biology [annotated to include ‘misconceptions’] [with arrow drawn to]
• [with arrow from] Commercial awareness of synthetic biology applications
• Religion (sanctity of life)
• Copyright (intellectual property)
• Safety (products and methods)
• Unethical use of technology (like any other technology)
• Changing habits
• Eventual creation of a sentient being?
• Press!
• Funding
• Politics
• X-Men Homo betterthanus
• Acceptable range of colours for kittens/dinosaurs
• Acceptability of creating new life forms which must be destroyed at the end of the experiment
• Alteration of ecosystems
• Non-compatible biologies (e.g. not DNA-based)

What legal and regulatory issues face synthetic biology?

• Patents. Ensuring that BioBrick parts are free to the public
• Creative commons law
• Health & safety
• DIY biology. Genetic transformations at home
• Bioterrorism Act/legislation
• Synthetic biology affecting medicine
• Coordination between countries
• Establishment of trust in biological products
• Biological certificates
• Proper education programs
• Selection of model organisms
• Eventual use in humans
• What are the limits? Are there any limits?
• Synthetic biology black market
• Differing laws between countries
• Absence of applicable laws in some (eg. 3rd world/nations.)
• Legal status of synthetic organisms
• Government legislation – misconceptions of synthetic biology and how we would use it

What ethical questions are raised by synthetic biology?

• Is synthetic life still life?
• What is life?
• Do synthetic organisms have rights?
• Should you patent synthetic life?
• Is it ok to make a synthetic species extinct?
• How synthetic is synthetic?
• Who is responsible?
• Who has the right to benefit from the advantages of synthetic organisms?
• Are we prepared to take responsibility?
• Should synthetic organisms be introduced into human physiological systems?
• What organisms are we allowed to synthesize?
• Are we ready to be replaced by synthetical forms of lives? (synthetical humans)
• Are they actually alive?
• Are you ready to treat them the same way as ‘naturals’?
• Who can and cannot work in synthetic biology?
• Can you stop them once created? No switch!
• Are we trying to play ‘God’?
• Is it right to have lab strains?
• Is it ok to create synthetic weapons?

Please write down one word to describe how you feel about synthetic biology

• Complicated
• Zeitgeist
• Object oriented Gen. Eng.
• The science of 21st century
• Awesome
• Promise
• Fun and creativity
• Worthy