Current Ethical Issues in Synthetic Biology: Where Should We Go from Here?

Abstract

Synthetic biology (SynBio) is an emerging scientific field which has quickly established momentum and visibility. Although no single definition of SynBio prevails, the field broadly encompasses the application of engineering principles to biology, redesigning biological materials and using them as new substrates to create products and entities not otherwise found in nature. This article first reviews SynBio, highlighting the novel aspects of this technology. It then synthesizes ethical issues highlighted in the literature to date and makes some initial claims that research on the ethical aspects of SynBio should: avoid creating a new subtype of bioethics, concentrate on novel concepts and problems, and be situated within a context of cooperative interdisciplinary investigation.

Keywords:

• creating life
• ethical issues
• regulation
• synthetic biology

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thanks to the two anonymous referees for their helpful comments. The article was written with support from the SYBHEL project: Synthetic Biology for Human Health: Ethical and Legal Issues (SiS-2008-1.1.2.1-230401). The author gratefully acknowledges this support from the European Commission.