Recombinant DNA Technology (Biotechnology and Society)

From SynBioCyc
Revision as of 04:27, 3 September 2013 by Jeffrey Barrick (Talk | contribs)

Jump to: navigation, search

Required Reading

Error fetching PMID 4342968:
  1. Paul Berg. Asilomar and Recombinant DNA (Nobel Foundation) [Berg1980]
  2. ISBN:0309044863 [Fredrickson1991]
    Fredrickson, Donald S. "Asilomar and Recombinant DNA: The End of the Beginning" pp258-307 Read online at National Academies Press. Pages 259-264 are a brief history of molecular biology. You can skip over them if you wish and concentrate on pages 265-284.
  3. Error fetching PMID 4342968: [Jackson1972]
    Original paper reporting construction of first recombinant DNA molecule.

Discussion Questions

  1. What experiments prompted the Asilomar conference? What new technologies had been developed that made them possible?
  2. Who imposed the 6-month moratorium on recombinant DNA research? Why?
  3. What new dangers were possible with the use of recombinant DNA?
  4. Was the comparison of recombinant DNA to nuclear weapons appropriate at the time? Why? Why not? What about now?
  5. How was the reaction of the public and government different from that of scientists?
  6. What organizations or agencies oversee recombinant DNA research today?
  7. What are the lasting effects of the Asilomar model for examining the safety of new biotechnology?

Additional Background