 | Synthetic Biology: A New Paradigm for Biological Discovery
Olivia Scaros, PharmD, Richard Fisler, and Gary Sams, Ph.D. Beachead Consulting, February 2006 The late Richard P. Feynman, a Nobel laureate in physics, professor of theoretical physics at the California Institute of Technology, and a member of the team that developed the first atomic bomb, left an epigram on the blackboard of his office which sums up the conundrum of synthetic biology: “What I cannot create, I cannot understand.” Synthetic biology can be described as both the design and fabrication of biological components and systems that do not exist in the natural world and the re-design and fabrication of existing biological systems.By combining expertise in the fields of biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology, engineering and organic chemistry, synthetic biology can be utilized to manufacture existing biological pieces into machines and create artificial systems that reproduce properties of living systems. By creating systems that mimic what nature has created, such as the interactions between proteins and genes, scientists can discover the basic principles that rule living systems. They can then apply that knowledge for untold purposes, from creating new medicines to solving the world’s energy crisis to discovering life on other planets.The term “synthetic biology” was first used by Barbara Hodom in 1980 to describe a genetically-engineered bacteria using recombinant DNA technology (1). At the 2000 American Chemical Society Meeting in San Francisco, the term was again introduced by Eric Kool, PhD, Professor of Chemistry at Stanford University, to describe the synthesis of unnatural organic molecules that function in living systems (2). Today’s synthetic biologists, who inhabit some of the most prestigious institutions such as Yale, Harvard, MIT, Berkeley and Stanford, are looking to channel genetic engineering from a hit-or-miss field of discovery to the type of discipline such as engineering uses to build bridges, computers and buildings. The Human Genome Project was the necessary first step for the field of synthetic biology to grow. Deciphering the genetic code of many organisms has greatly impacted biotechnology and medical science, allowing researchers the ability to analyze whole genomes and aiding them in their research endeavors. Synthetic biology research of today is building on the Human Genome Project. One timely discovery which demonstrates synthetic biology’s relevance is the reconstruction of the 1918 Spanish virus that killed as many as 50 million people. Concerns today about avian flu in Asia and Europe led scientists from the United States Armed Forces Institute of Pathology to make from scratch the 1918 virus. By using sequenced genomic information recovered from a female flu victim buried in the Alaskan permafrost, the team, utilizing reverse genetics, created microscopic, virus-like strings of genes called plasmids. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention then inserted these plasmids into human kidney cells for the final step in the virus reconstruction. The flu virus has eight gene segments. Three of those segments appear to be crucial in explaining how the bird-based virus became adapted to humans (3). This information can aid in the development of a vaccine and prepare anti-viral therapies to be used if necessary.While traditional genetic engineers take genes from one organism and implant them into another, synthetic biologists change the behavior of the cell by designing and rewiring the complex networks of genes inside the cell. Although much of the ongoing research is focused on end-product applications, some aspects are still focused on seeing just how far the research can be taken. How much genetic manipulation can be accomplished inside an organism and still have it interact with the environment? The more concrete applications include drug discovery, pharmaceutical production, alternative energy sources, assay technologies, and detection of environmental hazards. Synthetic biologists are working with many different parts of organisms, from DNA to RNA, proteins to polyketides, and from ribosomes to protein kinases. Many technology platforms have been discovered and patented through this research, such as directed evolution, where scientists are engineering organisms to have “improved” biotechnology processes, which provides answers to questions about adaptation, enzyme function and natural evolution. (1) Hobom, B. “Surgery of genes. At the doorstep of synthetic biology.” Medizin. Klinik. 1980;75:14-21.(2) Rawls, R. “‘Synthetic Biology’ makes its debut.” Chem. Eng. News. 2000;49-53.(3) Kaplan, D. “Reconstructed 1918 flu virus providing insights for potential pandemics.” October 5, 2005. (www.medicalnewstoday.com)© 2006 Beachhead Consulting ALL RIGHTS RESERVEDPDF Format 158 pp.
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