This is damn cool!

[Kärnfysikern]

DNA expert 'close to creating artificial life'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main...wventer106.xml

Soon we will be able to design and create life anyway we want it, cant wait!

Scientists have claimed they are on the verge of creating the world's first artificial life form.

Craig Venter, a controversial American DNA researcher, has built an entirely synthetic chromosome - a sequence of genes - out of laboratory chemicals and plans to implant it in an existing cell.

If he succeeds his team will have created an almost entirely new life form for the first time
Researchers hope the discovery will lead to developments in bio-engineering to help tackle climate change, or provide alternative energy sources.

The scientists want to create new kinds of bacterium to make new types of bugs which can be used as green fuels to replace oil and coal, digest toxic waste or absorb carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

It will also provoke widespread debate about the ethics of creating new species.

Mr Venter told The Guardian newspaper that creating the new life form would be "a very important philosophical step in the history of our species".

"We are going from reading our genetic code to the ability to write it. That gives us the hypothetical ability to do things never contemplated before," he said.

Mr Venter's team is the first to create an artificial chromosome. It is 381 genes long and has been named Mycoplasma laboratorium.

The scientists hope to implant it in to the cell of another bacterium to create the artificial life.

The resulting bacterium will rely on the molecules of the host cell to reproduce, but will otherwise be entirely artificial.

Mr Venter provoked controversy when he started sequencing the human genome for commercial purposes, in competition with the Human Genome Project.

[Myalansky]

If it`s all true and if the further experiments` results are positive, than this MUST be the most interesting discovery I`ve witnessed, ever.

I mean, this is a motherfu***ng revolution!

[soulstealer]

If it`s all true and if the further experiments` results are positive, than this MUST be the most interesting discovery I`ve witnessed, ever.

I mean, this is a motherfu***ng revolution!

You aint kidding brother... I mean we are actually taking about Genesis Creation not alteration but actual creation of a life form...

[Red Ketchup]

I'm truly impressed! Thats quite a step forward. Think of the potential for all the medical advances. Never mind nanobots when you can make custom bugs.

I know thats FAR FAR into the future, but imagine a custom organism injected into the bloodstream which would unclog arteries by eating the blockage and then die within 48 hrs to be neatly disposed of by the kidneys...

Or even better for us, an organism that eats fat cells

One can dream...

Unfortunately that will also bring out all the crazies and whackjobs out of the shadows who will want to ban it.

Red

[Kärnfysikern]

Yeah a MAJOR breakthrough no doubt. Its one of the most exciting news I have read in years!

I wonder how far it is until we can custom make organisms for any use. Imagine customizing a bacteria that attacks hiv virus, or like the example red gave. The possibilities are damn near endless with the rate technology is progressing I bet it will be on the experimental stage within 15-20 years or less.

[eliteforce]

i just hope this new life form doesn't turn into a virus or something and kill us

[RA]

Scary to me.

[Haro3]

now if that isnt a defining characteristic to evolution of our species! awesome! hope theres no bs that keeps him from pursuing it...

[JuicedUpCanuk]

It not only scares me , im terrified .

[thegodfather]

I'm already pissed off and annoyed preemptively for the religious whack jobs who are going to try and weigh in on this and denounce it or want to pass legislation against such experiments. So, I'll be annoyed now since I know some stupid ass organization who wants to live in the stone age, or try to run EVERYONES life not just their own, by some 5,000 year old religious doctrine.

This is an awesome achievement, I cant wait to see the new technology and methods that arise from this...

[RA]

Im more worried about scientists creating a super bug that kills all of us. You talk about creating life, sounds like a big ass can of worms.

I'm already pissed off and annoyed preemptively for the religious whack jobs who are going to try and weigh in on this and denounce it or want to pass legislation against such experiments. So, I'll be annoyed now since I know some stupid ass organization who wants to live in the stone age, or try to run EVERYONES life not just their own, by some 5,000 year old religious doctrine.

This is an awesome achievement, I cant wait to see the new technology and methods that arise from this...

[Teabagger]

thats what scares me. I am no longer amazed, just saddened, by the scientific community's utter belief in themselves. The arrogance. I am certainly not against progress, but too many times in the past science has made long and loud, and convincing proclamations as to something, ie; 1970's the coming ice age was a "fact", not conjecture. Now the earth is warming due to human activity...another "fact", DDT was a horrible poison that resulted in thousands of deaths and deformities, Hillary Clinton is NOT a lesbian, and the list goes on.

Unintended consequences....

[Kärnfysikern]

Well DDT wasnt a horrible poison and there is not a single shred of evidence that it has ever injured a human.

The only thing technological progress does is open up more oppertunities for humanity, but how we want to use it is entirely up to us. Everything has a good and bad side.

Overall its technology that is making life better for every human on this planet.

[Flagg]

Yeah a MAJOR breakthrough no doubt. Its one of the most exciting news I have read in years!

I wonder how far it is until we can custom make organisms for any use. Imagine customizing a bacteria that attacks hiv virus, or like the example red gave. The possibilities are damn near endless with the rate technology is progressing I bet it will be on the experimental stage within 15-20 years or less.

My first thought when I read that was "could they create a anti-body to combat diseases like AIDS?"

Incredible stuff. It's sad to see people be fearful of stuff like this. THIS is what the human race should be about. Bettering ourselves, self exploration and beyond.

[RA]

Spoken like a scientist

Well DDT wasnt a horrible poison and there is not a single shred of evidence that it has ever injured a human.

The only thing technological progress does is open up more oppertunities for humanity, but how we want to use it is entirely up to us. Everything has a good and bad side.

Overall its technology that is making life better for every human on this planet.

[RA]

To not at least consider the dangers would be ignorant. Im not advocating putting a halt to anything...lets just say Im "concerned"

My first thought when I read that was "could they create a anti-body to combat diseases like AIDS?"

Incredible stuff. It's sad to see people be fearful of stuff like this. THIS is what the human race should be about. Bettering ourselves, self exploration and beyond.

[Flagg]

To not at least consider the dangers would be ignorant. Im not advocating putting a halt to anything...lets just say Im "concerned"

I was chatting to my Dad about this and he said the same thing you did, that he's all for progress but he thinks it sounds a lil "worrying", but with anything new there's always going to be someone/group that will exploit and abuse it for their own ends.

[thegodfather]

Theres often little evidence for the things that government or media turn into hysteria campaigns. Steroids , DDT, the list goes on. I am excited to see the kind of developments that arise out of this. Mr.Venter is a very smart man, and has a vision, which I think will be able to benefit science as a whole.

[MuscleScience]

I dont really see anything new here. This is no different than cutting and splicing genes in and out of plasmid dna of bacteria now. We have for years created new and custom organisms to the point that its routine practice. I worked in a lab were we cloned and cut genes in and out of bacteria that lived in extremely high salt environments (halophilic). We even created a bacteria that used toxic substances such as Cd and Zn as electron donors in their metabolism. There is even a bacteria the government created to degrade depleted uranium from nuclear power plants.

[Kärnfysikern]

Spoken like a scientist

Damn straight

I dont really see anything new here. This is no different than cutting and splicing genes in and out of plasmid dna of bacteria now. We have for years created new and custom organisms to the point that its routine practice. I worked in a lab were we cloned and cut genes in and out of bacteria that lived in extremely high salt environments (halophilic). We even created a bacteria that used toxic substances such as Cd and Zn as electron donors in their metabolism. There is even a bacteria the government created to degrade depleted uranium from nuclear power plants.

Thats a damn cool work bro. The 20th century was the century of physics and the 21th century will without a doubt belong to biotech and nanotech.

[MuscleScience]

Damn straight



Thats a damn cool work bro. The 20th century was the century of physics and the 21th century will without a doubt belong to biotech and nanotech.

I couldnt agree more, Have you heard about the proteome project?

It is the next step to the human genome project. Basically now that we know the gene sequence they are now charactorizing the proteins that each gene codes for. They thought at first that humans had around 100,000 proteins, then it later got cut down to about 33,000 and to date scientist estimated it now at around 28,000 in number. When they finally figure out what gene creates what protein and then what each protein does thats when all the science fiction stuff and potential will come to life. But there is a tremendous amount of work to be done before that happens.