Latest news with #MichaelDunn
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Controversial project could create human DNA from scratch
A controversial project that aims to create the building blocks of human life has started. It was previously thought creating human DNA could lead to designer babies or unforeseen complications and changes for future generations. However, in a world first, medical charity the Wellcome Trust, has given an initial £10m to start the project. Scientists say it has the potential to transform the understanding of human health, open opportunities to develop treatments for incurable diseases and develop climate-resistant crops. 'Our DNA determines who we are and how our bodies work,' said Michael Dunn, director of discovery research at Wellcome. 'Through creating the necessary tools and methods to synthesise a human genome, we will answer questions about our health and disease that we cannot even anticipate yet, in turn transforming our understanding of life and wellbeing.' In the next five to ten years scientists aim to build a full synthetic human chromosome. Every cell in the human body contains DNA, which is a molecule that carries genetic information that physically makes people who they are. The new Synthetic Human Genome Project will potentially allow researchers not just to be able to read DNA but create parts of it. Scientists will first aim to create larger blocks of human DNA to try to create a synthetically constructed a human chromosome – which contains genes that govern our development, repair and maintenance. These chromosomes would then be studied to find out how genes and DNA regulate our bodies. The project is led by Professor Jason Chin from the Generative Biology Institute at Ellison Institute of Technology and the University of Oxford, in collaboration with team of researchers from Cambridge, Kent, Manchester, Oxford and Imperial College London. 'The ability to synthesize large genomes, including genomes for human cells, may transform our understanding of genome biology and profoundly alter the horizons of biotechnology and medicine,' said Professor Chin. The project will be confined to test tubes and petri dishes, with no attempt to create synthetic life. But critics fear the research opens the way for researchers to create enhanced or modified humans. Professor Bill Earnshaw, a genetic scientist at Edinburgh University who designed a method for creating artificial human chromosomes fears this research could open the opportunity to attempt to create biological weapons, enhanced humans or even creatures that have human DNA. "The genie is out of the bottle," he told BBC News. "We could have a set of restrictions now, but if an organisation who has access to appropriate machinery decided to start synthesising anything, I don't think we could stop them." There will also be a dedicated social science project running alongside the researchers led by Professor Joy Zhang, a sociologist, at the University of Kent. "We want to get the views of experts, social scientists and especially the public about how they relate to the technology and how it can be beneficial to them and importantly what questions and concerns they have," she said.
Telegraph
26-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Human genetic code to be built from scratch
The human genetic code will be built from scratch by British scientists in a controversial new research project. The £10 million scheme to synthesise DNA is being funded by the Wellcome Trust and involves scientists from universities including Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College. Since the human genome was decoded at the start of the century, researchers have questioned whether it might be possible to use the blueprint to create genes and chromosomes artificially. In the five year project, the team hopes to create a fully synthetic human chromosome - making up about 2 per cent of human DNA - as a proof of concept. Michael Dunn, director of discovery research at Wellcome, said: ' Our DNA determines who we are and how our bodies work. 'Through creating the necessary tools and methods to synthesise a human genome we will answer questions about our health and disease that we cannot even anticipate yet, in turn transforming our understanding of life and wellbeing.' Researchers say synthetic genomes could help create new cell-based therapies or engineer plant species with new properties, such as being able to withstand pests and warming climates. Synthetic genomes have already been developed for small organisms such as the sexually transmitted bacterium Mycoplasma genitalium and But the human genome is much more complicated. However, experts said it is crucial to make sure the technology is not abused and that regulations are put in place. 'You can only truly understand something if you can build it from scratch,' said Prof Robin Lovell-Badge, group leader of the Francis Crick Institute in London. 'It is critical when developing new technology to understand not just issues of potential utility, but also those concerned with safety and risk. 'If these were to ever be used in humans, it would be important to design them carefully so that they can't lead to tumours or produce novel infectious particles. 'Indeed, I would urge incorporating an inducible genetic kill switch to eliminate them from any location in the body or at least to make them easy for the immune system to find and destroy.' The Wellcome Trust said it was commissioning a separate project to look into the ethics and public opinion on the research. Dr Pat Thomas, director of the campaign group Beyond GM, told the BBC: 'We like to think that all scientists are there to do good, but the science can be repurposed to do harm and for warfare'.
The Independent
26-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Controversial project could create human DNA from scratch
A controversial project that aims to create the building blocks of human life has started. It was previously thought creating human DNA could lead to designer babies or unforeseen complications and changes for future generations. However, in a world first, medical charity the Wellcome Trust, has given an initial £10m to start the project. Scientists say it has the potential to transform the understanding of human health, open opportunities to develop treatments for incurable diseases and develop climate-resistant crops. 'Our DNA determines who we are and how our bodies work,' said Michael Dunn, director of discovery research at Wellcome. 'Through creating the necessary tools and methods to synthesise a human genome, we will answer questions about our health and disease that we cannot even anticipate yet, in turn transforming our understanding of life and wellbeing.' In the next five to ten years scientists aim to build a full synthetic human chromosome. Every cell in the human body contains DNA, which is a molecule that carries genetic information that physically makes people who they are. The new Synthetic Human Genome Project will potentially allow researchers not just to be able to read DNA but create parts of it. Scientists will first aim to create larger blocks of human DNA to try to create a synthetically constructed a human chromosome – which contains genes that govern our development, repair and maintenance. These chromosomes would then be studied to find out how genes and DNA regulate our bodies. The project is led by Professor Jason Chin from the Generative Biology Institute at Ellison Institute of Technology and the University of Oxford, in collaboration with team of researchers from Cambridge, Kent, Manchester, Oxford and Imperial College London. 'The ability to synthesize large genomes, including genomes for human cells, may transform our understanding of genome biology and profoundly alter the horizons of biotechnology and medicine,' said Professor Chin. The project will be confined to test tubes and petri dishes, with no attempt to create synthetic life. But critics fear the research opens the way for researchers to create enhanced or modified humans. Professor Bill Earnshaw, a genetic scientist at Edinburgh University who designed a method for creating artificial human chromosomes fears this research could open the opportunity to attempt to create biological weapons, enhanced humans or even creatures that have human DNA. "The genie is out of the bottle," he told BBC News. "We could have a set of restrictions now, but if an organisation who has access to appropriate machinery decided to start synthesising anything, I don't think we could stop them." There will also be a dedicated social science project running alongside the researchers led by Professor Joy Zhang, a sociologist, at the University of Kent. "We want to get the views of experts, social scientists and especially the public about how they relate to the technology and how it can be beneficial to them and importantly what questions and concerns they have," she said.
Daily Mirror
26-06-2025
- Science
- Daily Mirror
‘Super humans' fears as scientists aim to create first human genome in a lab
Synthetic Human Genome (SynHG) project sparks fears that rogue scientists could create enhanced 'super humans' in decades to come British scientists are launching a controversial project to create the first synthetic human DNA in a lab. While they insist there is no intention to create a full synthetic human, researchers from universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Kent, Manchester and Imperial College London aim to write the first human genome from scratch. Some fear that opening this area of research could lead to rogue scientists seeking to create enhanced 'super humans' in decades to come. The Synthetic Human Genome (SynHG) project is being led by the Wellcome Trust, the world's largest medical research charity, and aims to boost health and treat incurable diseases. Michael Dunn, research director at Wellcome said: 'Our DNA determines who we are and how our bodies work and with recent technological advances the SynHG project is at the forefront of one of the most exciting areas of scientific research. Through creating the necessary tools and methods to synthesise a human genome we will answer questions about our health and disease that we cannot even anticipate yet, in turn transforming our understanding of life and wellbeing.' A leading genetic scientist has warned that creating human genetic material could lead to enhanced humans or even creatures that have human DNA. Prof Bill Earnshaw, of Edinburgh University, told the BBC: "The genie is out of the bottle. We could have a set of restrictions now, but if an organisation who has access to appropriate machinery decided to start synthesising anything, I don't think we could stop them. If we manage to create synthetic body parts or even synthetic people, then who owns them. And who owns the data from these creations?" How will it work? The human genome is the genetic information that makes us physically who we are. It is made up of DNA which is contained in every cell in our body and carries the genetic information it needs to do its job. Between 1990 and 2003 an international team of scientists took part in the Human Genome Project (HGP) to identify all human genes and sequence the three billion DNA base pairs. Now this information means scientists could take our understanding on another giant leap by not just reading DNA - but creating it. The team behind it insist the work of the SynHG (Synthetic Human Genome) project will be confined to test tubes and petri dishes and there will be no attempt to create synthetic life. They will first build blocks of DNA to create a whole human chromosome which decide how our cells develop and repair themselves. By experimenting on these chromosomes scientists could learn why some DNA reacts a certain way and how to modify it. This could help tackle inherited diseases which occur when genes go wrong. Prof Matthew Hurles, director of the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: "Building DNA from scratch allows us to test out how DNA really works and test out new theories, because currently we can only really do that by tweaking DNA in DNA that already exists in living systems". The team hope to first create a fully synthetic human chromosome, which makes up approximately 2% of our total DNA. Professor Jason Chin, of Oxford University, will lead the SynHG project. He said: 'The ability to synthesize large genomes, including genomes for human cells, may transform our understanding of genome biology and profoundly alter the horizons of biotechnology and medicine. With SynHG we are building the tools to make large genome synthesis a reality, and at the same time we are pro-actively engaging in the social, ethical, economic and policy questions that may arise as the tools and technologies advance.' The Wellcome Trust cautions that building a complete synthetic human genome to help change and treat human health could take decades. Prof Robin Lovell-Badge, of the Francis Crick Institute, said the project could create 'synthetic cells that can be grown in a lab'. He added: 'If these were to ever be used in humans, it would be important to design them carefully so that they can't lead to tumours or produce novel infectious particles. I would urge incorporating a genetic 'kill switch' to eliminate them from any location in the body or at least to make them easy for the immune system to find and destroy. There is no suggestion to make synthetic humans. We have no idea how to do this and it is likely to be very unsafe.' Such research has been taboo until now because of concerns it could lead to designer babies or unforeseen changes for future generations. Sarah Norcross, Director of the Progress Educational Trust (PET), said: 'We must recognise that this sort of work is not without controversy, and that is vital for researchers and the public to be in communication with one another. The public must have a clear understanding of what this research entails, while researchers and funders must have a thorough understanding of where the public wants to go with this science.' Dr Tom Collins, research lead at Wellcome, told the BBC: "We asked ourselves what was the cost of inaction. This technology is going to be developed one day, so by doing it now we are at least trying to do it in as responsible a way as possible and to confront the ethical and moral questions in an upfront way as possible".
BBC News
03-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Cambourne men's group restore replica of ancient Bourn windmill
An 80-year-old replica of one of the oldest surviving windmills in the UK has been restored by a community group that supports men's mental model of Bourn Windmill, near Cambourne, Cambridgeshire, was created by Michael Dunn in his workshop in Bristol in the 1940s, but had fallen into disrepair. Cambourne Men's Shed stripped paint, repaired sails, replaced damaged parts and repainted the miniature building, as part of the "challenging but enjoyable project".The fully working model will go on display alongside the original during the windmill's open days in the summer. Greg Thompson, who runs Cambourne Men's Shed, said "restoration of the replica has been a challenging but enjoyable project and many different Shedders have contributed over the past months after work began in October 2024".The organisation is part of a UK network "providing inclusive, welcoming spaces where men can connect and contribute to local causes while supporting their own wellbeing", he added. Mr Dunn was a lifelong windmill enthusiast, who photographed mills across the UK from the 1930s to 1970s, leaving behind a vast archive now held by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings."We are very pleased that it has been accepted as part of the museum and are delighted that it has now been restored by the local Men's Shed," his daughter Jennifer said. Bourn Windmill, a Grade I listed ancient monument, is an open trestle post mill which dates back about 500 years and is owned by local charity Cambridge Past, Present & manager Allan Scott Davies said the "model is more than just a charming garden feature, it tells a story of craftsmanship, family legacy, and community spirit". Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
