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Synthetic Biology
 The Royal Academy of
Engineering published its study on the emerging
field of synthetic biology in May 2009. The report
Synthetic Biology: scope, applications and
implications defines the term ‘synthetic biology’,
reviews the state of the field and considers
potential future developments and their likely
technological, economic and societal impact. It
assesses the requirements for the development of the
field and identifies key policy issues.
Synthetic
biology is defined as the engineering of
biologically based parts, novel devices and systems
as well as the redesigning of existing, natural
biological systems. The report concludes that it is
destined to become of critical importance to
building the nation’s wealth and has the potential
to transform world industry in areas such as energy,
health and the environment; to produce a new era of
wealth generation; and create large numbers of new
jobs.
In order to ensure that the UK is in the best
possible place to benefit from synthetic biology,
the report makes three recommendations:
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A strategic
plan for synthetic biology in the UK: This should be
a joint initiative between Government and the
national academies with input from academia and
industry. Its goal should be the rapid and
successful translation of research into commercial
applications.
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Investment in training and research
infrastructure: A number of multidisciplinary
research and training centres dedicated to synthetic
biology are needed. These will provide the skilled
workforce required if new industries are to be
realised.
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Societal and ethical implications: the
collaboration of social scientists and philosophers,
along with a public engagement programme, is
essential for the successful development of
synthetic biology.
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Synthetic Biology report (996KB)
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