Commercializing synthetic biology: Socio-ethical concerns and challenges under intellectual property regime

摘要

Synthetic biology also termed as `genomic alchemy' represents a powerfularea of science that is based on the convergence of biological sciences with systems engineering.It focuses on building, modelling, designing and fabricating novel biological systems usingcustomized gene components that result in artificially created genetic circuitry. As discussedin the present study, synthetic biology is an elegant consequence of amalgamation of variousbranches of science. It is speculated that the resulting synthetic organisms can successfullyprovide solutions for the problems where natural biological systems have failed. These artificiallysynthesized organisms can be tutored to meet diverse applications such as production of variousbiodrugs and creation of tailor-made metabolic pathways. Evidently, this revolutionarytechnology has the potential to transform human life directly and indirectly. The article providesan insight into the tremendous commercialization ability of synthetic biology in various sectors(bioenergy, medicine, and so on) as demonstrated by various initiatives, collaborative projectswith huge investments. It is noteworthy that synthetic biology tools and organisms can be usedfor saving, creating `or' destroying life; hence the study further deals with the socio-ethicalimplications of this rapidly advancing field of biology and also assesses the challenging role ofintellectual property regime in commercialization of synthetic biology.