Synthetic biology – The Conversation

The walls of your house could someday be built with living bacteria. Synthetic biologists are engineering microbes into living materials that are cheap and sustainable.

Organisms that produce synthetic fuel and suck carbon out of the air are just some of the possibilities of ‘engineering biology’ – if policymakers can shepherd the industry towards success.

Advances in genetic engineering have enabled researchers to seek ways to program new life. But has synthetic biology actually changed medicine and the environment, nearly two decades on?

AI helped design a working virus that kills bacteria. Researchers explain what it could mean for the fight against antibiotic resistance.

Synthetic biology lets us explore places where evolution has never gone, to help meet humanity’s food needs in a future shaped by climate change.

Researchers have found that even people with limited experience in biology can use AI to help them create a dangerous pathogen.

Researchers are turning microbes into microscopic construction crews by altering their DNA to make them produce building materials. The work could lead to more sustainable buildings.

The rapid rate of species declines means we should trial potential solutions before it’s too late.

Synthetic cells that look just like natural cells but are chemically reversed could outcompete other living organisms − with dire consequences for human health and the environment.

Scientists have created tiny self-replicating organisms made from frog stem cells. So is this as much of a Pandora’s Box as it sounds? Not yet, but we should carefully weigh the risks and rewards.

Researchers used AI to design working bacteriophages for the first time, raising questions about antibiotic resistance and biosecurity.

Scientists have shown that plastic bottles could be converted into levodopa, an important Parkinson’s drug, with implications for both medicine and the environment.

Immunotherapy has the potential to eliminate tumors, but works best for select patients. Engineering T cells to bypass cancer’s defenses could help expand treatment eligibility to more patients.

The rise of AI and synthetic biology has made deadly diseases look like a ‘low-risk, high-reward’ option for would-be terrorists.

Better photosynthesis could boost crop yields by up to 60% – and a tiny box made of proteins could help.

Solutions to some of the globe’s most daunting environmental challenges may be closer than you think. Scientists are harnessing nature to clean up toxic chemicals and mining waste.

As genetic engineering and DNA manipulation tools like CRISPR continue to advance, the distinction between what science ‘could’ and ‘should’ do becomes murkier.