Synbio: IS IT SAFE?
Gokul Madhav
BS-MS Third Year, Biological Sciences
How close are we to build an organism from scratch? This question perplexed scientists for a long time. We are given all the information (genes, proteins, carbohydrates, metal ions) to create an organism. Can we build one? Not yet. We haven’t reached a position where we can synthesize a completely new organism. But we can tweak and stitch together the parts of existing organisms. This new emerging area of science is called Synthetic Biology, as has been explored in the past articles.
The origin of synthetic biology can be traced back to 1961 when Francois Jacob and Jacques Monod explained that the regulation of transcription leads to control of enzyme activity. The tremendous improvement in sequencing and bioinformatics has expanded the realm of synthetic biology.
Synthetic Biology is transforming life in an ever-increasing manner from agriculture to healthcare. But the field of synthetic biology has its risks and tradeoffs. The general public should be made aware of the risks and safety concerned with it and debated well enough so that the field continues to flourish.
The major safety issues related to Synthetic Biology are:
Accidental release of modified organisms into the environment.
Introducing modified organisms into the environment where it is supposed to be benign.
Deliberately releasing modified organisms to cause harm (Bio-weapons).
The first and second situations can be managed by researchers and scientists working on Synthetic Biology. And point three is in the hands of Governments and International Organizations such as UNO. As the area is increasing at a rapid pace, the safety and security associated with these technologies have to be assessed carefully.
Environmental impacts like the interaction of the modified organism with the native population and other multidimensional interactions can be studied with the help of models. Scenarios where the accidental release of the modified organisms into the environment can be simulated and thoroughly studied. Bio-remediation is an area that also uses synthetic biology as a tool to clean the environment, from oil spills in seas to water purification in sewage treatment plants. Scientists can assess the biosafety of these organisms in labs.
Recreating known pathogenic viruses is another biosafety concern of today’s synthetic biology. Viruses like poliovirus and Spanish influenza viruses are already synthesized in labs. In a laboratory, scientists can reduce the risk associated with synthetic biology by using Biosafety Level 1 (BSL-1) organisms, which pose no threat of infection.
International Federation of Biosafety Association (IFBA) is a non-governmental, non- profit organization aimed to certify professionals with bio-risk management skills. The World Health Organisation (WHO) of the UN provides detailed laboratory manuals for biosafety. In India, the biosafety rules and guidelines come under the Environmental (Protection) Act of 1986. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) provides the guidelines for biosafety.
Bioterrorism uses modified bacteria and viruses to cause harm to large populations and communities. In these times where political relationships between countries are very fragile, there is a high concern regarding the use of synthetic biology for these inhumane purposes. Nevertheless, we should be informed of Synbio and all its risks and proceed with caution whenever dealing with matters of creation that can put human lives at stake.