Synthetic Biology
Questions abound on synthetic biology: Is it creating ‘new life’ or just part of biotechnology’s toolkit?
[Editor's note: Sophia Roosth, a historian of science at Harvard University, talks about her new book on synthetic biology: Synthetic: How ...
Glowing trees, no more colonoscopies and other wonders of synthetic biology
Synthetic biology offers the opportunity to create a wide array of novel life forms, products and approaches to medicine -- ...
GMO plant emerges as drug incubator to fight malaria
Scientists have discovered a gene that allows to double the production of artemisinin in the Artemisia annua plant. The artemisinin-based ...
Human skin, brain and bone cells grown on plants offer path for tissue implants
To grow clusters of human stem cells that mimic organs in the lab and might be used someday in tissue ...
Heart-pounding vegetables? Heart tissue grown on spinach may lead to organ regeneration
One of the biggest obstacles in the field of organ regeneration is scaling up production from tiny samples in a ...
Is it time to abandon the 14-day rule limiting human embryo research?
[A] group of Harvard University scientists has published a paper arguing that it is time to reconsider the 14-day rule ...
‘Live vaccines’: Recoding bacteria’s genome could lead to more effective immunizations
[G]eneticists used a new technique to recode 5 per cent of the Salmonella bacterium’s genome, introducing a record number of engineered ...
Future of milk? Genetically engineered yeast could replace cows
The latest new buzzword in food tech? Fermentation. And we’re not talking about the kimchi or kombucha kind. Rather, it’s ...
DIY DNA: Free online course teaches you how to make your own GMOs
Have you found yourself sitting in your kitchen lately wondering how to make bread, cheese or yogurt? How about genetically ...
Building synthetic life: Yeast experiments pave way for new drugs, treatments
The team that built the first synthetic yeast chromosome [in 2014] has now added five more chromosomes, totaling roughly a ...
‘Speeding up evolution’: Artificial yeast project could boost drug, biofuel production
An international team of scientists is closing in on its goal of replacing all the genetic material in a yeast ...
Sickle cell cure? Patient in complete remission following gene therapy
A number of recent headlines imply a recent case study just published...proves that gene therapy has cured sickle cell disease—a ...
No egg? No sperm? No problem. First artificial embryo made from stem cells
Using stem cells in grown-on 3D scaffolding in a laboratory petri dish, scientists have for the first time created an ...
Body parts from fruit? Skin grafts may use apples to grow human tissue
Biophysicist Andrew Pelling of University of Ottawa wants to [use apples to determine] the future of biomaterials and human tissue repair.... “What ...
Return of the woolly mammoth and 3 other ways CRISPR could change the world
The woolly mammoth has been extinct for more than 4000 years. Now scientists are talking about bringing it back with ...
Human Genome Project 2: Should scientists synthesize entire human genetic code from scratch?
In May 2016, scientists, lawyers and government representatives converged at Harvard to discuss the Human Genome Project-Write (HGP-Write), a plan ...
How genetically modified microorganisms could help humans farm on Mars
[A]s NASA gears up to touch down on Mars, research is turning to how astronauts will produce what they need ...
Evolving immunity: Controlling obesity, mood with designer gut bacteria faces obstacle
Beginning in 2012, scientists discovered they could use CRISPR proteins to precisely edit the genomes of not only bacteria but ...
Zhang vs. Doudna patent ruling: Broad Institute holds patents but University of California may appeal
The US patent office ruled [Feb. 15] that hotly disputed patents on the revolutionary genome-editing technology CRISPR-Cas9 belong to the ...
Proceed with caution: National Academies offers ‘qualified support’ for gene editing ‘abnormal’ embryos
The door to gene-edited humans was opened a crack by a joint National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of ...
Synthetic conservation: Gene drives could revive extinct animals, protect endangered species, knock out pests
Scientists working in coördination with a U.S. conservation group say they’ve established an evolution-warping technology called a “gene drive” in ...
‘Alphabet of life’ expanded by 2 synthetic letters, may help make organisms ‘Earth has never seen’
Until very recently, life on Earth was dictated by strings of just four letters: G, A, T, and C...Deciphering nature’s ...
For people with congenital hearing loss, gene therapy successful in mice offers promise
An improved gene therapy vector restores hearing and balance in genetically deaf mice, according to Boston's Children's Hospital researchers...[T]he mice's ...
Biodesign: Scientists team with artists to use synthetic biology in making everyday items
Synthetic biology is a rapidly growing market, expected to reach $13.4 billion by 2019. Often called...biodesign, the field is increasingly ...
Health care, energy, food could be transformed by synthetic biology
[Editor's note: Excerpts are taken from an interview with three experts in the field of synthetic biology: David Berry, general partner ...
Regrowing heart muscles without cancer risk, using synthetic stem cells
A new revolutionary stem cell technique is being used to treat those suffering from damaged muscles without the cancer risk ...
Recreating nature: Building medicines and materials from ‘unnatural proteins’
Over the last several years, with a big assist from the genomics and computer revolutions, David Baker, head of the Institute ...