Links to websites on synthetic biology
Submitted by michelle_zebralog on
There is lots of valuable information on the Web regarding synthetic biology, responsible research and innovation. If you are looking for good websites on the topic, we suggest you to start with the Synenergene partner organisations. Have a look at the website of the Rathenau Institute, for example. Or go to the list of partner organisations and navigate your way from there. If you would like to look beyond, here is a list of helpful websites (last updated on March 1, 2017):
An open, collaborative website on conferences, laboratories, courses and other resources about synthetic biology, syntheticbiology.org comprises a community-maintained wiki with lists of news, conferences, labs, educational courses, references, synthetic biology companies, and current research products. Unique content includes summaries of discussions/debates in synthetic biology.
- The Synthetic Biology Project was established as an initiative of the Science and Technology Innovation Program of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. The Synthetic Biology Project provides independent, rigorous analysis that can inform critical decisions affecting the research, commercialization and use of synthetic biology.
- The Hastings Center is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit bioethics research institute founded in 1969. The Center's mission is to address fundamental ethical issues in the areas of health, medicine, and the environment as they affect individuals, communities, and societies.
- SYNBIOSAFE is a scientific project supported fully by the EC-FP6 programme. It was the first project in Europe to research the safety and ethical aspects of synthetic biology, and aims to proactively stimulate a debate on these issues.”
- Providing a clear perspective on developing science and technology responsibly.
BBSRC - Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Research Councils UK
- Catalog of research funding opportunities across the biotechnology landscape, including findings of a synbio-related public dialogue project by the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
- University of Cambridge - Various research projects and programs
Institute of Biological Engineering
- The Institute of Biological Engineering (IBE) was established to encourage inquiry and interest in biological engineering in the broadest and most liberal manner and promote the professional development of its members.
- The J. Craig Venter Institute was formed in October 2006 through the merger of several affiliated and legacy organizations… and is a world leader in genomic research.
- The Keasling Lab has focused on both the basic science that underlies synthetic biology, such as the development of biosensors, characterization of genetic elements, and DNA assembly software, as well as the metabolic engineering applications of this basic science.
EBRC - Engineering Biology Research Consortium
- The Engineering Biology Research Consortium, or EBRC, aims to be the leading organization bringing together an inclusive community committed to advancing biological engineering to address national and global needs. EBRC was born from Synberc, the Synthetic Biology Engineering Research Center, a ten-year NSF-supported research program that formed a leading network of academic and industrial researchers and organizations in engineering biology.
MIT Center for Integrative Synthetic Biology
- The MIT Center for Integrative Synthetic Biology was established and funded in September 2013 as part of the NIH-NIGMS national centers for systems biology. A key feature of CISB is to focus on interdisciplinary and collaborative research into next-generation therapeutics. The MIT-CISB will create the therapeutics of the future by integrating systems biology and synthetic biology.
Wyss Institute – Biologically Inspired Engineering
- Building on the emerging science of Biologically Inspired Engineering and organized around six Enabling Technology Platforms, the Institute seeks to leverage the design strategies living systems use to self-organize, adapt, and compete for survival. A deeper understanding of how nature builds and self-organizes will ultimately lead to more effective medical devices that integrate seamlessly with our bodies. It will also enable the development of more efficient ways to manufacture, convert energy, and construct sustainable architecture.
EBICS - Emergent Behaviors of Integrated Cellular Systems
- The mission of EBICS is to create a new scientific discipline for building living, multi-cellular machines that solve real world problems in health, security, and the environment. This mission will be achieved through integrated research and education efforts, human resource development, diversity and outreach programs, and knowledge transfer activities.
- Most people are familiar with “genetics,” the inheritance of visible traits like eye and hair color. Traits are encoded by a molecular alphabet (A,T,C,G) in the well known double helix structure, DNA. Less well known, but gaining attention, is the network of protein particles that interact with DNA to control the expression of inherited traits. This process is epigenetics. Our group uses protein engineering to create new epigenetic machinery that regulates DNA at will. One day synthetic epigenetics may allow us to rationally design new biological systems with predictable, reliable behavior and replace “magic bullet medicine” with “smart medicine.”
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Microbiology, China
- CAS Key Laboratory of Microbial Physiological and Metabolic Engineering, affiliated to Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS), were founded in April, 2013. The orientation of key laboratory is applied basic research in microbial biotechnology, focusing on industrial microbial physiology and regulation of metabolism, the reconstruction and optimization of biosynthesis pathway and physiological adaptation functionalities. Its three research directions are molecular genetics and efficient genetic manipulation systems, molecular enzyme engineering and new biocatalytic process, and molecular physiology and advanced metabolic engineering. Its objectives focus on the development of new technologies and new methods towards microbial physiological engineering and metabolic engineering, developing the next generation of strains and whole-cell catalysts with predominate industrial performance.
The Biomass Systems and Synthetic Biology Center, FAPESP, Brazil
- The Biomass Systems and Synthetic Biology Center is part of the São Paulo State Bioenergy Research Center. The mission of BSSB is to produce scientific knowledge and technologies for the production of sustainable energy sources using plants, microorganisms and their combinations. The convergence of Synthetic Biology and Systems Biology will generate the knowledge of the parts and the diagrams connections that will allow the creation of new organisms. The research groups at the Center will plan and develop projects in Genomics, Genetics, Cell Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Physiology and Modeling, which will encourage the emergence of multidisciplinary collaborative research among the participating USP institutions. It is in this context that the USP SynBio Center places itself in the frontier of knowledge, focusing on research that can lead into new applications in Bioenergy.
Sybhel - Synthetic Biology for Human Health: the Ethical and Legal Issues
- The Sybhel Project examined several aspects of SynBio as it applies to human health and well-being, including: philosophical and social understandings of life (including new human-like entities); appropriate methodology for bioethical analysis in SynBio for health; ethical issues arising in utilising SynBio for health; regulatory and commercial aspects and public policy over the application of SynBio to health care. The project was funded by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Program (Science in Society).
Synthetic Biology in Cambridge
- The Synthetic Biology Strategic Research Initiative provides a hub for anyone interested in Synthetic Biology at the University of Cambridge, including researchers, commercial partners and external collaborators.
- A synbio wiki page, OpenWetWare is an effort to promote the sharing of information, know-how, and wisdom among researchers and groups who are working in biology & biological engineering.
- The BioBricks Foundation (BBF) is a public-benefit organization founded in 2006 by scientists and engineers who recognized that synthetic biology had the potential to produce big impacts on people and the planet and who wanted to ensure that this emerging field would serve the public interest. The Foundation’s mission is to ensure that the engineering of biology is conducted in an open and ethical manner to benefit all people and the planet.
UCSF Center for Systems and Synthetic Biology
- The UCSF Center for Systems and Synthetic Biology was funded in September 2010 as part of the NIGMS national centers for systems biology. This center serves as a nucleus at UCSF for interdisciplinary and quantitative explorations into how biological systems function. The center also serves as one node within a network of 15 national centers for systems biology. Major goals of our center are to expand the systems biology community at UCSF and, scientifically, to understand the design principles of cellular networks. The website has a section on education ad outreach materials.