Slashdot Mirror
Scientists Create Bacteria With Expanded DNA Code
perryizgr8 (1370173) writes "Biologists have managed to create a bacteria with DNA made of the usual A-T, C-G plus an artificial third base pair, thus encoding more data in DNA. From the article: 'The scientists behind the work at the Scripps Research Institute have already formed a company to try to use the technique to develop new antibiotics, vaccines and other products, though a lot more work needs to be done before this is practical. The work also gives some support to the concept that life can exist elsewhere in the universe using genetics different from those on Earth. “This is the first time that you have had a living cell manage an alien genetic alphabet,” said Steven A. Benner, a researcher in the field at the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution in Gainesville, Fla., who was not involved in the new work.'"
I for one, welcome our new bacteria overlords.
I, for one, welcome our new alien-genetic infections.
None of which I am in position or inclination to refute, seeing how we can't program the hardware we make ourselves all that great...
Did the bacteria exhibit any new traits due to these new base pairs?
We've seen this before, haven't we?
Ezekiel 23:20
“This is the first time that you have had a living cell manage an alien genetic alphabet,” said Steven A. Benner, a researcher in the field at the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution in Gainesville, Fla., who was not involved in the new work, and who is so totally not bitter about that.'"
oh i dont know maybe these e. choli start spilling these hybrid plasmids into human host, and this crap gets tangled in our dna, and kills us. Thats certainly the only bad thing that could happen.
'The scientists behind the work at the Scripps Research Institute have already formed a company to try to use the technique to develop new antibiotics, vaccines and other products.'
Step 1: Use public funds to do innovative research into expanding the genetic code in microbes.
Step 2: Patent everything to make sure no one else can build on your discoveries.
Step 3: Create a company that promises all the keywords for a biotech e.g. antibiotics, vaccines, etc.
Step 4: Get bought out
Step 5: ? Profit was Step 4.
Remember when science was about discovery and standing on the shoulders of giants?
I dug down to the source material because I wanted to see if they just managed to put this in the DNA or if it actually passes it down and it does.
But "alien" = no
From the article:
"the unnatural nucleoside triphosphates must be available inside the cell; endogenous polymerases must be able to use the unnatural triphosphates to faithfully replicate DNA containing the UBP within the complex cellular milieu; and finally, the UBP must be stable in the presence of pathways that maintain the integrity of DNA. Here we show that an exogenously expressed algal nucleotide triphosphate transporter efficiently imports the triphosphates of both d5SICS and dNaM (d5SICSTP and dNaMTP) into Escherichia coli"
Short version: It works because the particular building blocks are available in the cell for replication and the DNA repair mechanisms in the cell don't weed the modification out. Very significant stuff, but this isn't exactly "alien" or anything.
Priest: "Universe from nothing, no laws of physics, sped up time"+ huge discrepancies. Creationism? No. Big Bang Theory
So does this bacteria grown into a supermodel with orange hair?
In a hundred years, there will be nothing but abandoned cities under flood waters. Humans and many other animals will be dead. But there will be some bacteria with this extra base pair.
In a hundred million years, there will be no other evidence we were even here. Perhaps a future intelligent species will look back and wonder why some bacteria has more DNA than other life. They will make many interesting theories. Some will theorize that a previous intelligent species created the third base pair. And those that do will be called crackpots.
Democracy Now! - your daily, uncensored, corporate-free
Bacterias are already getting more and more immune to our anti-bacterial agents, we don't need some pseudo scientist making them ever stronger.
How about adding error-correction bits to the genetic code? This would reduce the rate of harmful mutations.
In a hundred years, there will be nothing but abandoned cities under flood waters.
you don't have to believe the most alarmist of "climate disruption" theories you know. they are just saying that to scare you so that they can collect more money.
I agree. I think this is a really bad idea. Far worse then "traditional" GMO
All (or most) of life has evolved from primeval soup to now with 4 base pairs. All (most) of 4 base pair DNA combinations have been explored by nature. There are no longer any surprises. Thats why there are no (or few) sudden upsets in the nature that we see around us. No super bug suddenly evolves that wipes out life as we know it
BUT with a new base pair all bets are off. There could be a sudden phase change where 5 base pair life takes over. Think superbug
Doh!
there's also plenty of land i think and space and all kinds of shit to live on - flooding won't wipe out the life on this planet, probably including us
Dr. Romesberg dismissed concern that novel organisms would run amok and cause harm, saying the technique was safe because the synthetic nucleotides were fed to the bacteria. Should the bacteria escape into the environment or enter someone’s body, they would not be able to obtain the needed synthetic material and would either die or revert to using only natural DNA.
Yeah, and we all know how well that worked out with the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park.
Thanks, Obama!
In a hundred years, bigsexyjoeJr will be ranting on ./v3 how in a hundred years the world will be nothing but abandoned cities encased in ice with no life left anywhere.
Maybe we deserve this world ?
So you are claiming the scientists are all working together, across national boundaries in adversarial countries, falsifying their evidence so well that it can pass peer review without any single one exposing the fraud and collecting their Nobel prize and untold riches in the process, so they can collect money from you? Do you have any idea how ridiculous you sound? You are dismissing science because of what you assume will happen in the political world based on their findings. It's as bizarre as saying germ theory is a hoax because you don't want to subsidize medicare or medicaid. People like you are more dangerous than climate change.
Scientists don't say "In a hundred years, there will be nothing but abandoned cities under flood waters. Humans and many other animals will be dead."
That is just nonsense, deliberately concocted to try to scare people. Go ahead, post a giant list of all the "scientists" who claim that in a hundred years, all the cities in the world will be flooded and all the humans extinct. Take your time, this is SCIENCE remember!
Now with 1.58x the data per digit!
I agree - one need not use "belief", akin to faith "the evidence of things unseen", to accept something that is visibly trending factual data. Or to notice that high tide on the Jersey Shore has been eating away the beaches and moving closer to the houses. These are objectively observable phenomena.that CAN be seen with the naked eye. Maybe the cities won't be under *deep* flood waters, but I would advise against buying an apartment in Manhattan's Battery Park City.
In a hundred years, there will be nothing but abandoned cities under flood waters. Humans and many other animals will be dead. But there will be some bacteria with this extra base pair.
That would be one interesting outcome - but in order to replicate, the bacteria needs these proteins that it won't get in nature. Take it outside the lab, and it won't last long. That has intriguing implications.
Seriously? Just because you've altered an already-known-working biological molecule, and it continued to work, you've concluded that alien life is more likely?? That's some degree of desperation!
The lead scientist is a chemist, not a molecular biologist.
I happen to be a molecular biologist.
The experiment is I suppose insteresting but the "new life form" has to be spoonfed the modified bases, evidently can't synthesise them itself, and doesn't have the necessary modifications to transcription (makes mRNA from DNA) and translation (assembles proteins from mRNA code) apparatus.
You seem unaware that even the worst-case forecasts for AGW don't include enough sea-level rise to do this.
You also seem unaware that even the worst-case for AGW don't include human extinction either....
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
This would be most inert DNA.
"In a hundred years, there will be nothing but abandoned cities under flood waters" No in the worst case many cities will not have any issues with flooding. Think Denver, Salt Lake City, Chicago, Phoenix, and so on, none are going to flood. ."Humans and many other animals will be dead." Nope that is extremely unlikely. Not impossible but I super unlikely.
"But there will be some bacteria with this extra base pair." Maybe but again not likely.
In other words wll in to crazy.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
APK you really should seek professional help.
If there were any merit in your wild claims, wouldn't there be a n±ü
K,S, Kyosuke tossed names @ apk. Apk fairly challenged him. K.S. Kyosuke ran. K.S. Kyosuke needs help if anyone does.
I didnt read your comment. The point is, obsessing over individuals and these perceived slights is very damaging to your already fragile mental health. A professional would tell you the same, if you only had the sense to seek professional help.
I agree - one need not use "belief", akin to faith "the evidence of things unseen", to accept something that is visibly trending factual data. Maybe the cities won't be under *deep* flood waters, but I would advise against buying an apartment in Manhattan's Battery Park City.
Are you seriously saying that in 100 years, all the cities in the world will be flooded and all the humans extinct? And that you have examined real data, and extrapolated a trend that indicates this?
Let's look at Geneva, Switzerland, elevation 357 meters. Are we really going to get an average sea level rise of about 4 meters per year to flood Geneva in 100 years? IPCC sure doesn't say that.
IPCC predicts that sea levels will go up by about 0.18 to 0.59 meters by 2099. http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/spmsspm-projections-of.html
A sea level rise of 0.59 meters by 2099 is not going to flood every city in the world. In fact, dykes can probably prevent most of that flooding. It works in the Netherlands.
It is strange that people will believe so many BS predictions of Global Warming Ultra Doom. It is bizarre that people will defend BS claims of Climate Change Ultra Doom as "Science", even though there is no evidence for Climate Disruption Ultra Doom.
If anybody truly believes that all the cities in the world will be flooded and all humans extinct in 100 years, prove it, using science. If you can't prove it, then stop defending it! Call it BS, why would that be a problem?
If you defend obvious alarmist nonsense, and call it science, then you are a Global Warming Alarmist. What you are doing is not science. If you really believe that Global Warming is a huge threat, you need to spread accurate information. Spreading and defending lies such as "in 100 years, all the cities in the world will be flooded" doesn't help anybody!
From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...
Hypocrite (do not as I do but as I say): It's obvious it's you. Run dry of your sockpuppet modpoints already to mod us down with? Yes. Hahahaha. Apk disproved any false positives here stupid (you fail again) http://slashdot.org/comments.p... stupid.
Run dry of sockpuppet modpoints to downmod us with already? Yes. Hahahaha. You lose. You fail.