Team:Arizona State/policypractices

SynBio Workshop

Our summer research experience began perhaps like many professional academic and industrial synthetic biology projects begin. We came up with a scientific, engineering-driven solution to a global challenge and immediately started thinking of DNA parts to put together. Our challenge is to make energy production more efficient. The approach we selected was to make two types of genetically modified bacteria that cooperate to build fuel molecules.

It is a challenge for scientists like us who are developing early proof-of-concept systems, such as new synthetic devices for biofuels, to engineer systems in a way that anticipates broader societal impacts. This requires a forward-thinking approach that is both practical and well-informed by input from experts in policy and practices. Scientists are often so specialized in their chosen discipline that these requirements can be difficult to meet.

Therefore, our Policy and Practices project aims to address the challenge of achieving a forward-thinking approach that is both practical and well-informed. The desired outcome is successfully gathering information that will allow us to engineer our system in a way that anticipates relevant societal impacts.

Step One: Identify Significant Societal Impacts

We presume that the following societal impacts are highly significant in regard to biofuels produced by synthetic biology:

1. Biosafety – Bacteria and other microscopic organisms have the potential to interact in an undesirable way with other species, possibly even being toxic. As such, it’s important to know what kind of effect a breach in containment could have on bystanders or even the general public. By learning more about containment in the event of a crisis, we can help minimize the risk associated with genetic research. Biosafety also incorporates preventative measures such as early detection systems.

2. Biosecurity – Biofuel producing microbes, if developed to the point of being economically viable, are uniquely relevant to issues of security. Alternative energy is a huge global issue, and there are many powerful organizations that have holdings in the energy industry. As a result, biofuel production plants could be targets for sabotage in the form of purposeful contamination. It’s important that we learn about how to recognize foul play quickly so that the fuel products don’t become contaminated by foreign microbes. Contingency plans need to be developed so that biofuels can be successful in the energy industry.

3. Legal – Biofuels are a concept that has been around for a number of years, and there a lot of major players involved in its development. As the project goes forward, it will be important to understand the precedents that have been set in genetic research for patent laws. Before we can register our multi-strain system as a new patent, we will have to be sure that it is substantially unique in the field and provide attributions to other groups when necessary.

4. Social – Alternative energy in the form of biofuels would have huge implications for the energy industry at-large. Companies specializing in the production of fossil-fuels make up a significant portion of the work force, and a sharp decrease in their revenue could displace a lot of employees. It will be important to know who benefits from keeping biofuels unviable in a competitive market, and how these special interest groups are working to influence public policy for the development of alternative energy.

Practices