Monday 13 July 2009

Radio 4 documentary on Synthetic Biology

Broadcast on July 13th Richard Hollingham investigated the practical and moral questions raised by synthetic biology.

He met some of the scientists who are designing 'new life', including Dick Kitney, and visited the new Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation at Imperial College, London. Richard talked to biologist and entrepreneur Craig Venter, whose research team has recently transformed one species of bacteria into another by gene transplantation.

He also discussed some of the moral and ethical issues raised by the creation of synthetic life, and asked if a new regulatory framework is needed that both protects the public and provides scientists with unambiguous boundaries for their work.

This programme can be heard here.


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