Challenges and recent progress in the governance of biosecurity risks in the era of synthetic biology

Discovering topics and trends in biosecurity law research: A machine learning approach

This study employed machine learning techniques, specifically Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), to analyze 559 articles on biosecurity legislation from 1996 to 2023. The LDA model identified nine key research topics, including Agricultural Management and Production, Biosafety and Environmental Impact, Biological Invasion and Regulation, Biosecurity Legislation and Prevention, Agriculture and Environmental Relations, Virus Infection and Governance, Health Risk Assessment and Detection, Disease Prevention and Biotechnology, and Policy Control and Research. The findings reveal significant trends: an increasing focus on Biosecurity Legislation and Prevention and a declining interest in Agricultural Management and Production. Geographically, Australia, Canada, and the United States lead in biosecurity research, exhibiting diverse research topics. Journal-level analysis highlights central topics such as Agricultural Management and Production, Biosecurity Legislation and Prevention, and Health Risk Assessment and Detection. This study's use of LDA reduces subjective bias, providing a more objective analysis of global biosecurity legislation literature. The research underscores the importance of expanding geographical scope, integrating advanced machine learning models, adopting interdisciplinary approaches, and assessing policy impacts to enhance biosecurity strategies globally.

Multiscale Mathematical Modeling in Systems Biology: A Framework to Boost Plant Synthetic Biology

Global food insecurity and environmental degradation highlight the urgent need for more sustainable agricultural solutions. Plant synthetic biology emerges as a promising yet risky avenue to develop such solutions. While synthetic biology offers the potential for enhanced crop traits, it also entails risks of extensive environmental damage. This review highlights the complexities and risks associated with plant synthetic biology, while presenting the potential of multiscale mathematical modeling to assess and mitigate those risks effectively. Despite its potential, applying multiscale mathematical models in plants remains underutilized. Here, we advocate for integrating technological advancements in agricultural data analysis to develop a comprehensive understanding of crops across biological scales. By reviewing common modeling approaches and methodologies applicable to plants, the paper establishes a foundation for creating and utilizing integrated multiscale mathematical models. Through modeling techniques such as parameter estimation, bifurcation analysis, and sensitivity analysis, researchers can identify mutational targets and anticipate pleiotropic effects, thereby enhancing the safety of genetically engineered species. To demonstrate the potential of this approach, ongoing efforts are highlighted to develop an integrated multiscale mathematical model for maize (Zea mays L.), engineered through synthetic biology to enhance resilience against Striga (Striga spp.) and drought.

Biotechnology research security: challenges in Latin America

Biotechnology research presents significant security challenges in Latin America. Protecting intellectual property, managing risk associated with dual-use technologies, and upholding research integrity and ethics are particularly challenging in emerging countries due to resource constraints, political instability, and regulatory shortcomings. Regional efforts are needed to foster secure research environments.

Biosafety and biosecurity: treading China's synbio tightrope

Our second piece dissects China's intricate balancing act in synthetic biology (synbio), analyzing its adept maneuvering between fostering innovation and imposing strict regulations. The priority is enhancing biosecurity, biosafety, and public trust, crucial for sustainable gene editing advancements and preventing potential misuse of synthetic viruses.

The whack-a-mole governance challenge for AI-enabled synthetic biology: literature review and emerging frameworks

AI-enabled synthetic biology has tremendous potential but also significantly increases biorisks and brings about a new set of dual use concerns. The picture is complicated given the vast innovations envisioned to emerge by combining emerging technologies, as AI-enabled synthetic biology potentially scales up bioengineering into industrial biomanufacturing. However, the literature review indicates that goals such as maintaining a reasonable scope for innovation, or more ambitiously to foster a huge bioeconomy do not necessarily contrast with biosafety, but need to go hand in hand. This paper presents a literature review of the issues and describes emerging frameworks for policy and practice that transverse the options of command-and-control, stewardship, bottom-up, and laissez-faire governance. How to achieve early warning systems that enable prevention and mitigation of future AI-enabled biohazards from the lab, from deliberate misuse, or from the public realm, will constantly need to evolve, and adaptive, interactive approaches should emerge. Although biorisk is subject to an established governance regime, and scientists generally adhere to biosafety protocols, even experimental, but legitimate use by scientists could lead to unexpected developments. Recent advances in chatbots enabled by generative AI have revived fears that advanced biological insight can more easily get into the hands of malignant individuals or organizations. Given these sets of issues, society needs to rethink how AI-enabled synthetic biology should be governed. The suggested way to visualize the challenge at hand is whack-a-mole governance, although the emerging solutions are perhaps not so different either.

A Self-Regenerating Artificial Cell, that is One Step Closer to Living Cells: Challenges and Perspectives

Controllable, self-regenerating artificial cells (SRACs) can be a vital advancement in the field of synthetic biology, which seeks to create living cells by recombining various biological molecules in the lab. This represents, more importantly, the first step on a long journey toward creating reproductive cells from rather fragmentary biochemical mimics. However, it is still a difficult task to replicate the complex processes involved in cell regeneration, such as genetic material replication and cell membrane division, in artificially created spaces. This review highlights recent advances in the field of controllable, SRACs and the strategies to achieve the goal of creating such cells. Self-regenerating cells start by replicating DNA and transferring it to a location where proteins can be synthesized. Functional but essential proteins must be synthesized for sustained energy generation and survival needs and function in the same liposomal space. Finally, self-division and repeated cycling lead to autonomous, self-regenerating cells. The pursuit of controllable, SRACs will enable authors to make bold advances in understanding life at the cellular level, ultimately providing an opportunity to use this knowledge to understand the nature of life.

Anthrax revisited: how assessing the unpredictable can improve biosecurity

B. anthracis is one of the most often weaponized pathogens. States had it in their bioweapons programs and criminals and terrorists have used or attempted to use it. This study is motivated by the narrative that emerging and developing technologies today contribute to the amplification of danger through greater easiness, accessibility and affordability of steps in the making of an anthrax weapon. As states would have way better preconditions if they would decide for an offensive bioweapons program, we focus on bioterrorism. This paper analyzes and assesses the possible bioterrorism threat arising from advances in synthetic biology, genome editing, information availability, and other emerging, and converging sciences and enabling technologies. Methodologically we apply foresight methods to encourage the analysis of contemporary technological advances. We have developed a conceptual six-step foresight science framework approach. It represents a synthesis of various foresight methodologies including literature review, elements of horizon scanning, trend impact analysis, red team exercise, and free flow open-ended discussions. Our results show a significant shift in the threat landscape. Increasing affordability, widespread distribution, efficiency, as well as ease of use of DNA synthesis, and rapid advances in genome-editing and synthetic genomic technologies lead to an ever-growing number and types of actors who could potentially weaponize B. anthracis. Understanding the current and future capabilities of these technologies and their potential for misuse critically shapes the current and future threat landscape and underlines the necessary adaptation of biosecurity measures in the spheres of multi-level political decision making and in the science community.

The worsening divergence of biotechnology: the importance of risk culture

In the last 20 years, the field of biotechnology has made significant progress and attracted substantial investments, leading to different paths of technological modernization among nations. As a result, there is now an international divide in the commercial and intellectual capabilities of biotechnology, and the implications of this divergence are not well understood. This raises important questions about why global actors are motivated to participate in biotechnology modernization, the challenges they face in achieving their goals, and the possible future direction of global biotechnology development. Using the framework of prospect theory, this paper explores the role of risk culture as a fundamental factor contributing to this divergence. It aims to assess the risks and benefits associated with the early adoption of biotechnology and the regulatory frameworks that shape the development and acceptance of biotechnological innovations. By doing so, it provides valuable insights into the future of biotechnology development and its potential impact on the global landscape.

Construction of Coculture System Containing Escherichia coli with Different Microbial Species for Biochemical Production

Microbial synthesis of target chemicals usually involves multienzymatic reactions in vivo, especially for compounds with a long metabolic pathway. However, when various genes are introduced into one single strain, it leads to a heavy metabolic burden. In contrast, the microbial coculture system can allocate metabolic pathways into different hosts, which will relieve the metabolic burdens. Escherichia coli is the most used chassis to synthesize biofuels and chemicals owing to its well-known genetics, high transformation efficiency, and easy cultivation. Accordingly, cocultures containing the cooperative E. coli with other microbial species have received great attention. In this review, the individual applications and boundedness of different combinations will be summarized. Additionally, the strategies for the self-regulation of population composition, which can help enhance the stability of a coculture system, will also be discussed. Finally, perspectives for the cocultures will be proposed.

The Need for Biosecurity Education in Biotechnology Curricula

The growth of biotechnology in recent decades and the dual-use nature of most bioscience research are making their misuse, or accidental misuse or release, more likely and present as threats to biosecurity. A proactive approach is through educating the next generation of scientists to be more security conscious. However, current educational and professional programs in biosecurity are lacking. In this perspective, we recommend that biosecurity educational opportunities should be implemented and expanded for undergraduate and graduate students who will likely use one or more methods in the field of biotechnology. We then propose that biosecurity education is a key factor in a path toward sustainable and safe research. Finally, a set of 17 biosecurity competencies organized into 6 distinct themes is outlined.

Fostering openness in open science: An ethical discussion of risks and benefits

Transformation of science by embracing the concepts of open science presents a very attractive strategy to enhance the reliability of science. Open science policies embody the concepts of open data and open access that encompass sharing of resources, dissemination of ideas, and synergizing the collaborative forums of research. Despite the opportunities in openness, however, there are grave ethical concerns too, and they present a dual-use dilemma. Access to sensitive information is seen as a security risk, and it also possesses other concerns such as confidentiality, privacy, and affordability. There are arguments that open science can be harmful to marginalized groups. Through this study, we aim to discuss the opportunities of open science, as well as the ethical and security aspects, which require further deliberation before full-fledged acceptance in the science community.