Work begins to create artificial human DNA from scratch
LONDON — Work has begun on a controversial project to create the building blocks of human life from scratch, in what is believed to be a world first.
The research has been taboo until now because of concerns it could lead to designer babies or unforeseen changes for future generations.
But now the world's largest medical charity, the Wellcome Trust, has given an initial £10m to start the project and says it has the potential to do more good than harm by accelerating treatments for many incurable diseases.
Dr Julian Sale, of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, who is part of the project, told BBC News the research was the next giant leap in biology.
"The sky is the limit. We are looking at therapies that will improve people's lives as they age, that will lead to healthier aging with less disease as they get older.
"We are looking to use this approach to generate disease-resistant cells we can use to repopulate damaged organs, for example in the liver and the heart, even the immune system," he said.
But critics fear the research opens the way for unscrupulous researchers seeking to create enhanced or modified humans.
Dr Pat Thomas, director of the campaign group Beyond GM, said: "We like to think that all scientists are there to do good, but the science can be repurposed to do harm and for warfare".
Details of the project were given to BBC News on the 25th anniversary of the completion of the Human Genome Project, which mapped the molecules in human DNA and was also largely funded by Wellcome.
Every cell in our body contains a molecule called DNA which carries the genetic information it needs. DNA is built from just four much smaller blocks referred to as A, G, C and T, which are repeated over and over again in various combinations. Amazingly it contains all the genetic information that physically makes us who we are.
The Human Genome Project enabled scientists to read all human genes like a bar code. The new work that is getting under way, called the Synthetic Human Genome Project, potentially takes this a giant leap forward – it will allow researchers not just to read a molecule of DNA, but to create parts of it – maybe one day all of it — molecule by molecule from scratch.
The scientists' first aim is to develop ways of building ever larger blocks of human DNA, up to the point when they have synthetically constructed a human chromosome. These contain the genes that govern our development, repair and maintenance.
These can then be studied and experimented on to learn more about how genes and DNA regulate our bodies.
Many diseases occur when these genes go wrong so the studies could lead to better treatments, according to Prof Matthew Hurles, director of the Wellcome Sanger Insititute which sequenced the largest proportion of the Human Genome.
"Building DNA from scratch allows us to test out how DNA really works and test out new theories, because currently we can only really do that by tweaking DNA in DNA that already exists in living systems".
The project's work will be confined to test tubes and dishes and there will be no attempt to create synthetic life. But the technology will give researchers unprecedented control over human living systems.
And although the project is hunting for medical benefits, there is nothing to stop unscrupulous scientists misusing the technology.
They could, for example, attempt to create biological weapons, enhanced humans or even creatures that have human DNA, according to Prof Bill Earnshaw, a highly respected genetic scientist at Edinburgh University who designed a method for creating artificial human chromosomes.
"The genie is out of the bottle," he told BBC News. "We could have a set of restrictions now, but if an organisation who has access to appropriate machinery decided to start synthesising anything, I don't think we could stop them"
Ms Thomas is concerned about how the technology will be commercialised by healthcare companies developing treatments emerging from the research.
"If we manage to create synthetic body parts or even synthetic people, then who owns them. And who owns the data from these creations? "
Given the potential misuse of the technology, the question for Wellcome is why they chose to fund it. The decision was not made lightly, according to Dr Tom Collins, who gave the funding go-ahead.
"We asked ourselves what was the cost of inaction," he told BBC News.
"This technology is going to be developed one day, so by doing it now we are at least trying to do it in as responsible a way as possible and to confront the ethical and moral questions in an upfront way as possible".
A dedicated social science program will run in tandem with the project's scientific development and will be led by Prof Joy Zhang, a sociologist, at the University of Kent.
"We want to get the views of experts, social scientists and especially the public about how they relate to the technology and how it can be beneficial to them and, importantly, what questions and concerns they have," she said. — BBC
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Saudi Gazette
2 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
Work begins to create artificial human DNA from scratch
LONDON — Work has begun on a controversial project to create the building blocks of human life from scratch, in what is believed to be a world first. The research has been taboo until now because of concerns it could lead to designer babies or unforeseen changes for future generations. But now the world's largest medical charity, the Wellcome Trust, has given an initial £10m to start the project and says it has the potential to do more good than harm by accelerating treatments for many incurable diseases. Dr Julian Sale, of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, who is part of the project, told BBC News the research was the next giant leap in biology. "The sky is the limit. We are looking at therapies that will improve people's lives as they age, that will lead to healthier aging with less disease as they get older. "We are looking to use this approach to generate disease-resistant cells we can use to repopulate damaged organs, for example in the liver and the heart, even the immune system," he said. But critics fear the research opens the way for unscrupulous researchers seeking to create enhanced or modified humans. Dr Pat Thomas, director of the campaign group Beyond GM, said: "We like to think that all scientists are there to do good, but the science can be repurposed to do harm and for warfare". Details of the project were given to BBC News on the 25th anniversary of the completion of the Human Genome Project, which mapped the molecules in human DNA and was also largely funded by Wellcome. Every cell in our body contains a molecule called DNA which carries the genetic information it needs. DNA is built from just four much smaller blocks referred to as A, G, C and T, which are repeated over and over again in various combinations. Amazingly it contains all the genetic information that physically makes us who we are. The Human Genome Project enabled scientists to read all human genes like a bar code. The new work that is getting under way, called the Synthetic Human Genome Project, potentially takes this a giant leap forward – it will allow researchers not just to read a molecule of DNA, but to create parts of it – maybe one day all of it — molecule by molecule from scratch. The scientists' first aim is to develop ways of building ever larger blocks of human DNA, up to the point when they have synthetically constructed a human chromosome. These contain the genes that govern our development, repair and maintenance. These can then be studied and experimented on to learn more about how genes and DNA regulate our bodies. Many diseases occur when these genes go wrong so the studies could lead to better treatments, according to Prof Matthew Hurles, director of the Wellcome Sanger Insititute which sequenced the largest proportion of the Human Genome. "Building DNA from scratch allows us to test out how DNA really works and test out new theories, because currently we can only really do that by tweaking DNA in DNA that already exists in living systems". The project's work will be confined to test tubes and dishes and there will be no attempt to create synthetic life. But the technology will give researchers unprecedented control over human living systems. And although the project is hunting for medical benefits, there is nothing to stop unscrupulous scientists misusing the technology. They could, for example, attempt to create biological weapons, enhanced humans or even creatures that have human DNA, according to Prof Bill Earnshaw, a highly respected genetic scientist at Edinburgh University who designed a method for creating artificial human chromosomes. "The genie is out of the bottle," he told BBC News. "We could have a set of restrictions now, but if an organisation who has access to appropriate machinery decided to start synthesising anything, I don't think we could stop them" Ms Thomas is concerned about how the technology will be commercialised by healthcare companies developing treatments emerging from the research. "If we manage to create synthetic body parts or even synthetic people, then who owns them. And who owns the data from these creations? " Given the potential misuse of the technology, the question for Wellcome is why they chose to fund it. The decision was not made lightly, according to Dr Tom Collins, who gave the funding go-ahead. "We asked ourselves what was the cost of inaction," he told BBC News. "This technology is going to be developed one day, so by doing it now we are at least trying to do it in as responsible a way as possible and to confront the ethical and moral questions in an upfront way as possible". A dedicated social science program will run in tandem with the project's scientific development and will be led by Prof Joy Zhang, a sociologist, at the University of Kent. "We want to get the views of experts, social scientists and especially the public about how they relate to the technology and how it can be beneficial to them and, importantly, what questions and concerns they have," she said. — BBC
Saudi Gazette
19-05-2025
- Saudi Gazette
Scientists try to solve mystery of mass dinosaur grave beneath lush Canadian forest
ALBERTA, Canada — Hidden beneath the slopes of a lush forest in Alberta, Canada, is a mass grave on a monumental scale. Thousands of dinosaurs were buried here, killed in an instant on a day of utter devastation. Now, a group of paleontologists have come to Pipestone Creek — appropriately nicknamed the "River of Death" — to help solve a 72-million-year-old enigma: how did they die? Trying to work out exactly what happened here starts with the hefty strike of a sledgehammer. Brute force is needed to crack open the thick layer of rock that covers what Professor Emily Bamforth, who's leading the dig, describes as "paleo gold". As her team begins the more delicate job of removing the layers of dirt and dust, a jumble of fossilized bones slowly begins to emerge."That big blob of bone right there is, we think, part of a hip," Prof Bamforth says, watched on by her dog Aster — whose job today is to bark if she spots any nearby bears."Then here, we have all of these long, skinny bones. These are all ribs. And this is a neat one — it's part of a toe bone. This one here, we have no idea what it is — it's a great example of a Pipestone Creek mystery."BBC News has come to Pipestone Creek to witness the sheer scale of this prehistoric graveyard and see how researchers are piecing together the of fossils have been collected from the site, and are constantly generating new bones all belong to a dinosaur called Pachyrhinosaurus. The species, and Prof Bamforth's excavation, feature in a new landmark BBC series — Walking With Dinosaurs — which uses visual effects and science to bring this prehistoric world to animals, which lived during the Late Cretaceous period, were a relative of the Triceratops. Measuring about five meters long and weighing two tonnes, the four-legged beasts had large heads, adorned with a distinctive bony frill and three horns. Their defining feature was a big bump on the nose called a dig season has just started and lasts each year until autumn. The fossils in the small patch of ground that the team are working on are incredibly tightly packed; Prof Bamforth estimates there are up to 300 bones in every square far, her team has excavated an area the size of a tennis court, but the bed of bones extends for a kilometre into the hillside."It's jaw dropping in terms of its density," she tells us."It is, we believe, one of the largest bone beds in North America."More than half of the known dinosaur species in the world are described from a single specimen. We have thousands of Pachyrhinosaurus here."Paleontologists believe the dinosaurs were migrating together in a colossal herd for hundreds of miles from the south — where they had spent the winter — to the north for the area, which had a much warmer climate than it does today, would have been covered in rich vegetation, providing abundant food for this enormous group of plant-eating animals."It is a single community of a single species of animal from a snapshot in time, and it's a huge sample size. That almost never happens in the fossil record," says Prof this patch of north-western Alberta wasn't just home to Pachyrhinosaurus. Even bigger dinosaurs roamed this land, and studying them is essential to try and understand this ancient hours drive away, we reach the Deadfall Hills. Getting there involves a hike through dense forest, wading — or doggy-paddling in the case of Aster — across a fast-running river, and clambering over slippery digging is required here; super-sized bones lie next to the shoreline, washed out from the rock and cleaned by the flowing water, just waiting to be picked up.A huge vertebra is quickly spotted, as are bits of ribs and teeth scattered across the Jackson Sweder is particularly interested in what looks like a chunk of dinosaur skull. "Most of what we find here is a duck-billed dinosaur called Edmontosaurus. If this is a skull bone, this is a dinosaur that's large — probably 30ft (10m) long," he Edmontosaurus, another herbivore, roamed the forests like the Pachyrhinosaurus — and is helping paleontologists build up a picture of this ancient is the collection manager at the Philip J Currie Dinosaur Museum in nearby Grande Prairie, where the bones from both of these giants are taken to be cleaned up and analyzed. He is currently working on a huge Pachyrhinosaurus skull that's about 1.5m long and has been nicknamed "Big Sam".He points to where the three horns should be at the top of the frill, but the one in the middle is missing. "All the skulls that are decently complete have a spike in that spot," he says. "But its nice little unicorn spike doesn't seem to be there."Throughout years working at the extraordinary site, the museum team has collected 8,000 dinosaur bones, and the surfaces of the lab are covered in fossils; there are bones from Pachyrhinosaurus of every size, from young to material from so many animals allows researchers to learn about dinosaur biology, answering questions about how the species grows and the make-up of the community. They can also look at individual variations, to see how one Pachyrhinosaurus could stand out from the herd – as may be the case with Big Sam and his missing of this detailed research, in the museum and at the two sites, is helping the team to answer the vital question: how did so many animals in Pipestone Creek die at the same time?"We believe that this was a herd on a seasonal migration that got tangled up in some catastrophic event that effectively wiped out, if not the entire herd, then a good proportion of it," Prof Bamforth the evidence suggests that this catastrophic event was a flash flood — perhaps a storm over the mountains that sent an unstoppable torrent of water towards the herd, ripping trees from their roots and shifting Bamforth says the Pachyrhinosaurus wouldn't have stood a chance. "These animals are not able to move very fast because of their sheer numbers, and they're very top heavy — and really not very good at swimming at all."Rocks found at the site show the swirls of sediment from the fast-flowing water churning everything up. It's as if the destruction is frozen in time as a wave in the this nightmare day for the dinosaurs is now a dream for paleontologists."We know, every time we come here, it's 100% guaranteed we'll find bones. And every year we discover something new about the species," says Prof Bamforth."That's why we keep coming back, because we're still finding new things."As the team packs up their tools ready to return another day, they know there's a lot of work ahead. They've only just scratched the surface of what's here — and there are many more prehistoric secrets just waiting to be revealed. — BBC
Saudi Gazette
09-04-2025
- Saudi Gazette
Titanic scan reveals ground-breaking details of ship's final hours
LONDON — A detailed analysis of a full-sized digital scan of the Titanic has revealed new insight into the doomed liner's final hours. The exact 3D replica shows the violence of how the ship ripped in two as it sank after hitting an iceberg in 1912 — 1,500 people lost their lives in the disaster. The scan provides a new view of a boiler room, confirming eye-witness accounts that engineers worked right to the end to keep the ship's lights on. And a computer simulation also suggests that punctures in the hull the size of A4 pieces of paper led to the ship's demise. "Titanic is the last surviving eyewitness to the disaster, and she still has stories to tell," said Parks Stephenson, a Titanic analyst. The scan has been studied for a new documentary by National Geographic and Atlantic Productions called Titanic: The Digital Resurrection. The wreck, which lies 3,800m down in the icy waters of the Atlantic, was mapped using underwater robots. More than 700,000 images, taken from every angle, were used to create the "digital twin", which was revealed exclusively to the world by BBC News in 2023. Because the wreck is so large and lies in the gloom of the deep, exploring it with submersibles only shows tantalizing snapshots. The scan, however, provides the first full view of the Titanic. The immense bow lies upright on the seafloor, almost as if the ship were continuing its voyage. But sitting 600m away, the stern is a heap of mangled metal. The damage was caused as it slammed into the sea floor after the ship broke in half. The new mapping technology is providing a different way to study the ship. "It's like a crime scene: you need to see what the evidence is, in the context of where it is," said Parks Stephenson. "And having a comprehensive view of the entirety of the wreck site is key to understanding what happened here." The scan shows new close-up details, including a porthole that was most likely smashed by the iceberg. It tallies with the eye-witness reports of survivors that ice came into some people's cabins during the collision. Experts have been studying one of the Titanic's huge boiler rooms — it's easy to see on the scan because it sits at the rear of the bow section at the point where the ship broke in two. Passengers said that the lights were still on as the ship plunged beneath the waves. The digital replica shows that some of the boilers are concave, which suggests they were still operating as they were plunged into the water. Lying on the deck of the stern, a valve has also been discovered in an open position, indicating that steam was still flowing into the electricity generating system. This would have been thanks to a team of engineers led by Joseph Bell who stayed behind to shovel coal into the furnaces to keep the lights on. All died in the disaster but their heroic actions saved many lives, said Parks Stephenson. "They kept the lights and the power working to the end, to give the crew time to launch the lifeboats safely with some light instead of in absolute darkness," he told the BBC. "They held the chaos at bay as long as possible, and all of that was kind of symbolized by this open steam valve just sitting there on the stern." A new simulation has also provided further insights into the sinking. It takes a detailed structural model of the ship, created from Titanic's blueprints, and also information about its speed, direction and position, to predict the damage that was caused as it hit the iceberg. "We used advanced numerical algorithms, computational modelling and supercomputing capabilities to reconstruct the Titanic sinking," said Prof Jeom-Kee Paik, from University College London, who led the research. The simulation shows that as the ship made only a glancing blow against the iceberg it was left with a series of punctures running in a line along a narrow section of the hull. Titanic was supposed to be unsinkable, designed to stay afloat even if four of its watertight compartments flooded. But the simulation calculates the iceberg's damage was spread across six compartments. "The difference between Titanic sinking and not sinking are down to the fine margins of holes about the size of a piece of paper," said Simon Benson, an associate lecturer in naval architecture at the University of Newcastle. "But the problem is that those small holes are across a long length of the ship, so the flood water comes in slowly but surely into all of those holes, and then eventually the compartments are flooded over the top and the Titanic sinks." Unfortunately the damage cannot be seen on the scan as the lower section of the bow is hidden beneath the sediment. The human tragedy of the Titanic is still very much visible. Personal possessions from the ship's passengers are scattered across the sea floor. The scan is providing new clues about that cold night in 1912, but it will take experts years to fully scrutinize every detail of the 3D replica. "She's only giving her stories to us a little bit at a time," said Parks Stephenson. "Every time, she leaves us wanting for more." — BBC
