Golden Rice – a controversial genetically modified product designed to combat malnutrition – has been approved as safe in the Philippines. But key questions remain unanswered.
Xenobots have been called the world’s first “living robots”. They are made entirely of living tissue, and can be programmed to move towards a certain object.
South Australia has lifted its moratorium on GM crops, while Tasmania has extended its ban. But the question should no longer be a simple binary of being “for” or “against” GM technology.
Surveys suggest fewer than half of Americans are looking forward to lab-grown meat. A moral psychologist examines common objections and why for the most part they’re not logical.
Despite many claims, nobody knows for sure how the environmental footprint of lab-grown meat compares to livestock. An animal scientist says the issue is not black and white.
Cultured meat comes from cells in a lab, not muscles in an animal. While regulatory and technological aspects are being worked out, less is known about whether people are up for eating this stuff.
In 2003 the Human Genome Project “cracked the code of life”, yet parts of our DNA remained unidentified. A new study fills out our genetic blueprint by using a nanotechnology-based technique.
If Mary Shelley wrote the book today, Victor would surely be a synthetic biologist. But those fiddling with living things in 2018 have hopefully learned from her cautionary tale.
Research institutes and “centres of excellence” exist around the world to draw talent and to share resources - all with the aim of solving important problems.
One big challenge for gene therapies is delivering DNA or RNA safely to cells inside patients’ bodies. New nanoparticles could be an improvement over the current standard – repurposed viruses.
Professor - Emerging Technologies (Stem Cells) at The University of Melbourne and Group Leader - Stem Cell Ethics & Policy at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, The University of Melbourne