Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves

Imagine a future in which human beings have become immune to all viruses in which bacteria can custom-produce everyday items like a drinking cup or generate enough electricity to end oil dependency. Building a house would entail no more work than planting a seed in the ground. These scenarios may seem far-fetched but pioneering geneticist George Church and science writer Ed Regis show that synthetic biology is bringing us ever closer to making such visions a reality. In Regenesis Church and Regis explore the possibilitiesand perilsof the emerging field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology in which living organisms are selectively altered by modifying substantial portions of their genomes allows for the creation of entirely new species of organisms. Until now nature has been the exclusive arbiter of life death and evolution; with synthetic biology we now have the potential to write our own biological future. Indeed as Church and Regis show it even enables us to revisit crucial points in the evolution of life and through synthetic biological techniques choose different paths from those nature originally took. Such exploits will involve far more than just microbial tinkering. Full-blown genomic engineering will make possible incredible feats from resurrecting woolly mammoths and other extinct organisms to creating mirror life forms with a molecular structure the opposite of our own. These technologiesfar from the out-of-control nightmare depicted in science fictionhave the power to improve human and animal health increase our intelligence enhance our memory and even extend our life span. A breathtaking look at the potential of this world-changing technology Regenesis is nothing less than a guide to the future of life.