The Hidden Charm of Life

Synthetic biology is an engineering view on biotechnology, which has revolutionized genetic engineering. The field has seen a constant development of metaphors that tend to highlight the similarities of cells with machines. I argue here that living organisms, particularly bacterial cells, are not ma...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Manuel Porcar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2019-01-01
Series:Life
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/9/1/5
Description
Summary:Synthetic biology is an engineering view on biotechnology, which has revolutionized genetic engineering. The field has seen a constant development of metaphors that tend to highlight the similarities of cells with machines. I argue here that living organisms, particularly bacterial cells, are not machine-like, engineerable entities, but, instead, factory-like complex systems shaped by evolution. A change of the comparative paradigm in synthetic biology from machines to factories, from hardware to software, and from informatics to economy is discussed.
ISSN:2075-1729