Gwyndaf Hughes
Science Videographer
How the researchers hope to create human DNA
Work has begun on a controversial project to create the building blocks of human life from scratch, in what is believed to be a world first.
The research has been taboo until now because of concerns it could lead to designer babies or unforeseen changes for future generations.
But now the World’s largest medical charity, the Wellcome Trust, has given an initial £10m to start the project and says it has the potential to do more good than harm by accelerating treatments for many incurable diseases.
Dr Julian Sale, of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, who is part of the project, told BBC News the research was the next giant leap in biology.
“The sky is the limit. We are looking at therapies that will improve people’s lives as they age, that will lead to healthier aging with less disease as they get older.
“We are looking to use this approach to generate disease-resistant cells we can use to repopulate damaged organs, for example in the liver and the heart, even the immune system,” he said.
But critics fear the research opens the way for unscrupulous researchers seeking to create enhanced or modified humans.
Pat Thomas, director of the campaign group Beyond GM, said: “We like to think that all scientists are there to do good, but the science can be repurposed to do harm and for warfare”.
Details of the project were given to BBC News on the 25th anniversary of the completion of the Human Genome Project, which mapped the molecules in human DNA and was also largely funded by Wellcome.
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Artwork: The aim is to build sections of human DNA from scratch
Every cell in our body, with the exception of red blood cells, contains a molecule called DNA which carries the genetic information it needs.
DNA is built from just four much smaller blocks referred to as
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