Re-created viruses and toxic bacteria top a new ranking of risks.
The news: A study ordered by the Department of Defense concluded that new genetic-engineering tools are expanding the range of malicious uses of biology. The tools aren’t a danger in and of themselves, but rapid progress raises the specter of “synthetic-biology-enabled weapons.”
The biggest risk: Among the risks deemed of “high concern” is the possibility that terrorists or a rogue state could recreate a virus such as smallpox. (Technology for synthesizing a virus from its DNA instructions has already been demonstrated.)
Don’t get the wrong idea: As our own Antonio Regalado reports, the US military, which asked for the study, is among the largest funders of synthetic biology. “You don’t want to start a new bioweapons race,” says Filippa Lentzos, a senior research fellow in biosecurity at King’s College London. “The field needs to ask itself who is driving the agenda, and how does this look from the outside.”
The news: A study ordered by the Department of Defense concluded that new genetic-engineering tools are expanding the range of malicious uses of biology. The tools aren’t a danger in and of themselves, but rapid progress raises the specter of “synthetic-biology-enabled weapons.”
The biggest risk: Among the risks deemed of “high concern” is the possibility that terrorists or a rogue state could recreate a virus such as smallpox. (Technology for synthesizing a virus from its DNA instructions has already been demonstrated.)
Don’t get the wrong idea: As our own Antonio Regalado reports, the US military, which asked for the study, is among the largest funders of synthetic biology. “You don’t want to start a new bioweapons race,” says Filippa Lentzos, a senior research fellow in biosecurity at King’s College London. “The field needs to ask itself who is driving the agenda, and how does this look from the outside.”
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