SynBio has several definitions, tools and approaches. A NEST high-level expert group has defined SynBio as:

“[T]he engineering of biology: the synthesis of complex, biologically based (or inspired) systems which display functions that do not exist in nature. This engineering perspective may be applied at all levels of the hierarchy of biological structures…. In essence, synthetic biology will enable the design of ‘biological systems’ in a rational and systematic way.”

SynBio involves interplay between engineering and biology. It encompasses the intentional and rational design of artificial biological systems, using either naturally occurring or entirely synthetic components/parts. The emphasis is on creating these systems from scratch, as opposed to seeking to understand naturally occurring systems.

SynBio will use a ‘toolbox’ of parts to create novel products. These could be naturally occurring, redesigned or completely synthetic. Bhutkar has proposed the following classification:

• Synthetic Elements: fundamental building blocks that provide primitive functionality; ‘off the shelf’ components for SynBio;

• Synthetic Networks: individual components made from synthetic elements;
• Synthetic Organisms: arising from assembly of a minimal genome; and
• Synthetic Systems: multiple synthetic organisms working synchronously to achieve a complex objective.

SynBio methodology is broad-ranging and multi-disciplinary. It encompasses tools and approaches from many scientific disciplines – notably engineering, genetics, biotechnology and biochemistry; but also nanotechnology, physics and computational modelling.

(Image Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg Aesthetic Experiments
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