OMEN
10-07-2007, 10:04 AM
Washington - US scientist Craig Venter has built a synthetic chromosome using chemicals made in a laboratory, Britain's Guardian newspaper reported on Saturday.
A Venter spokesperson however declined to confirm any breakthrough. "The Guardian is ahead of themselves on this," Venter spokesperson Heather Kowalski told AFP.
"We have not achieved what some have speculated we have in synthetic life," Kowalski said. "When we do so there will be a scientific publication and we are likely months away from that."
Venter however told The Guardian that he is to announce the discovery within weeks and could possibly unveil it as early as Monday.
The breakthrough, which Venter hopes could help develop new energy sources to combat global warming, would be "a very important philosophical step in the history of our species," he told the newspaper.
"We are going from reading our genetic code to the ability to write it. That gives us the hypothetical ability to do things never contemplated before," he added.
The chromosome which Venter and his team has created is known as Mycoplasma laboratorium and, in the final step of the process, will be transplanted into a living cell where it should "take control," effectively becoming a new life form.
Pat Mooney, director of the Canadian bioethics organization ETC Group, told the paper that Venter was creating "a chassis on which you could build almost anything.
"It could be a contribution to humanity such as new drugs or a huge threat to humanity such as bio-weapons."
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A Venter spokesperson however declined to confirm any breakthrough. "The Guardian is ahead of themselves on this," Venter spokesperson Heather Kowalski told AFP.
"We have not achieved what some have speculated we have in synthetic life," Kowalski said. "When we do so there will be a scientific publication and we are likely months away from that."
Venter however told The Guardian that he is to announce the discovery within weeks and could possibly unveil it as early as Monday.
The breakthrough, which Venter hopes could help develop new energy sources to combat global warming, would be "a very important philosophical step in the history of our species," he told the newspaper.
"We are going from reading our genetic code to the ability to write it. That gives us the hypothetical ability to do things never contemplated before," he added.
The chromosome which Venter and his team has created is known as Mycoplasma laboratorium and, in the final step of the process, will be transplanted into a living cell where it should "take control," effectively becoming a new life form.
Pat Mooney, director of the Canadian bioethics organization ETC Group, told the paper that Venter was creating "a chassis on which you could build almost anything.
"It could be a contribution to humanity such as new drugs or a huge threat to humanity such as bio-weapons."
http://www.news24.com/Images/Source_Images/logo_afp.jpg