Breakthroughs in synthetic biology could create mirror versions of natural molecules, with devastating consequences for life on EarthThe ability to evade immune responses could allow bacteria to cause lethal infections as they multiply unchecked. Unlike viruses, bacteria don’t need to interact with specific molecules to infect an organism, and mirror bacteria could infect a broad range of hosts, including humans, other animals, and plants. And a lack of predators could enable mirror bacteria to spread widely through ecosystems.
Many of the authors initially thought mirror bacteria would not survive outside of a lab, given the lack of mirror nutrients, Glass says, but the report concludes that there are enough nutrients that would nourish mirror bacteria to sustain them.
Maybe this guy was quoted selectively in an unfair way, but if not, wow:
He is unconvinced that raising an alarm so far in advance of any threat, or even the existence of technology that could be used to directly create it, is appropriate. “This is like banning the transistor because you're worried about cybercrime 30 years down the road,” Ellington says. He is also concerned governments and regulators may not respond as the authors expect, potentially stifling beneficial research. “I’m not particularly worried about a mostly unknown threat 30 years from now versus the good that can be done now,” he says.
That’s the
definition of shortsightedness!