Xinhua News Agency's Interview with Ralph Bock, Xu Xu and Zhu Health on Synthetic Life Technologies for Human Beings (Full Text)

Can humans "synthetic life"? Is there a "gene transfer" in the history of human life? What level of synthetic life technology has been achieved? At the 19th International Botany Congress in Shenzhen, German plant molecular biologist Ralph Bock, Xu Xu, executive director of the National Gene Bank (Shenzhen), and Zhu Health, director of the Shanghai Center for Plant Adversity Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, gave an exclusive interview to Xinhua News Agency on these questions.
"gene level transfer" in the history of human life? Creatures pass genetic material to other organisms rather than their children, called gene level transfer.
study suggests that between 2 billion and 1 billion years, there was a large number of gene level transfers between organisms.
: "Gene level transfer" has ever happened? Ralph Bock: I think it's possible that it happened early in evolution.
first, the vast majority of living organisms were made up of single cells, which were more frequently involved in gene level transfer than multicellular organisms.
, the cells at that time had a more primitive structure, and the cell membranes and cell walls around them were probably less rigid and therefore more permeable.
means that DNA from the environment and other organisms can be easily absorbed.
: With the wide application of sequencing technology and the accumulation of genomic data, it has been found that there are a large number of similar genes in the genomes of different species and even distant organisms.
: If "gene level transfer" exists, what changes will our understanding of evolution produce? Ralph Bock: This suggests that gene-level transfer and genome-level transfer contributed significantly to the evolution of early life on Earth, as well as to more complex forms of life.
evolution of these organisms may be greatly accelerated.
Xuxun: New genes play an important role in the origin, evolution and adaptation of species to the environment, and gene level transfer, as an important way for species to introduce new genes, breaks the boundaries of kinship and complicates gene flow, which is also one of the important mechanisms of biological evolution.
: If this metastasis exists, it means that organisms can evolve gradually without having to change through natural variation, and can leapfrog in evolution.
: Can gene level transfer occur between higher animals? Ralph Bock: Gene level transfer between higher animals is extremely rare.
because higher animals have reproductive cells, the so-called reproductive line, which are well protected in the body, so it is difficult for exogentic DNA to encounter them.
level of synthetic life technology has been achieved? Reporter: What are the key technologies for synthetic life? Ralph Bock: Synthesis of life has two key requirements: a better understanding of the minimum genes and proteins needed to sustain life, and a technology that synthesizes large fragments of DNA and assembles it into a genome.
's all we need to synthesize life in bacteria," he said.
: A team of researchers used computer programs to design and write genetic information that was then synthesized by chemical synthesis and then put it into cells to replace the original DNA and ensure it remains active, according to a study in the American journal Science.
the study is reliable, it shows that synthetic life still needs to be supported by blueprints, that is, our understanding of existing life forms, our interpretation of the genome, sequencing techniques, and big data analysis tools.'
we currently synthesize yeast chromosomes that are less than one-fifth of the human minimum chromosome, so how to build oversized DNA and efficiently import receptor cells is another technical key."
: To what extent can humans now transform organisms? Ralph Bock: We can use gene and genome level transfer as tools to promote new applications in plant biotechnology and synthetic biology.
we can not only transfer genes horizontally, but also combine genes and genomes to create new plant species.
, for example, by combining the genomes of two existing species into a new species.
we hope to apply these technologies to crops in this way for the foreseeable future, producing a new generation of crops.
Ju Health: Whether gene level transfer can be used as a universal tool is still a guess, but some things have become important tools, such as agro-bacillus infested plants to form plant tumors, people through their research to develop plant genetically modified technology.
humans be able to synthesize life on a large scale? Although synthetic life is only in its infancy, public opinion has begun to pay attention to it.
because it is a double-edged sword, can benefit mankind, but also because out of control to open the "Pandora's Box."
: Can humans synthesize life on a large scale? Ralph Bock: I think there will be a lot of synthetic bacterial genomes in the next few years, and their functional testing in cells, and the technology will soon become the norm in many laboratories, but due to the complexity of gene and gene expression, it will be very difficult for fully synthesized plants or animals.
: Strictly speaking, so-called life synthesis does not really synthesize a cell.
understanding of life is not enough, and now only the simplest bacterial genomes, or even parts of the fungus chromosomes, can be synthesized.
for industrial bacteria, yeasts, such as strains that produce antibiotics, may be synthesized in large quantities.
to synthesize an advanced organism, I think it will be difficult to achieve in 100 years.
Xuxun: For the whole academic community, genomic design synthesis research will upend the research model of life science, improve human understanding of life processes, deepen human understanding of the nature of life, especially through genomic synthesis research to test all our current understanding of the genome, and will further strengthen our ability to regulate and control life processes.
source: Xinhua News Agency.