Scientists perform successful DNA transplant.

[LaurenG]

Scientists perform successful DNA transplant.

The Washington Post (6/29, A3, Weiss) reports, "Scientists said yesterday that they had transplanted a microbe's entire, tangled mass of DNA into a closely related organism, a delicate operation that cleanly transformed the recipient from one species into the other." The experiment, described in yesterday's online edition of the journal Science, "confirms that chromosomes can survive transplantation intact and literally rewrite the identity and occupation of the cells they move into. That is a crucial finding for scientists who hope to make novel life forms by packing synthetic chromosomes into hollow, laboratory-grown cells." But while the operation was a success, scientists admit there is still a lot of research to be done. For example, "a lot needs to be learned about why most transplants do not work and how the recipient's DNA is shut down."


Forbes (6/29, Herper) adds, "Researchers hope that custom-engineered cells could be useful in producing new types of medicines, including bacteria designed to help the body attack disease." However, such "applications are far off, and no fully synthetic organism has yet been created."


The New York Times (6/29, Wade) calls the director of the experiment, Dr. J. Craig Venter, a "pioneer in sequencing the human genome," but notes that many scientists are skeptical that this experiment was really "as significant as Dr. Venter said." According to some, the goal of Dr. Venter's experiment was "to make cells that might take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and produce methane, used as a feedstock for other fuels. Such an achievement might reduce dependency on fossil fuels and strike a blow at global warming." But synthesizing a whole chromosome and getting it to function will be a really remarkable step that will be much closer to the golden vision of creating new organisms," critics note, and this process is "just one of a long series of steps required before synthetic chromosomes could be put to use in living cells." The AP (6/29, Neergaard), the Christian Science Monitor (6/29, Velasquez-Manoff), and the Financial Times (6/29, Cookson) also cover the story.

From: Morning Rounds
Today's Medical News From Newspapers, TV, Radio and the Journals.
AMA Member Communications (email)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/28/AR2007062802046.html

http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/29/science/29cells.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

http://localnewsleader.com/jackson/stories/index.php?action=fullnews&id=128036

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0629/p03s03-usgn.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19491981/

[ixion]

1. the possible uses for that are just plain spooky

I'm all for science, to be sure. But we need to be careful when we work on this level. There is evidence that genetically modified crops are destroying the food supply. Before we start mussing with the DNA (and hence) RNA, I think we need to find out what the effects of the 'code' that we write are, prior to deploying it in the field, as was done with genetically modified seed.

[LaurenG]

2. I agree with you about that.

It does make me wonder what Frankenstein-ian(sp?) creation they could develop.

[acmavm]

3. The Stand by Stephen King is the first thing that popped into my

mind.