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Synthetic Biology
The ETC group publicly campaigns for increased regulation in the emerging scientific field of Synthetic Biology, which they refer to as "extreme genetic engineering". The groups major areas of concern surrounding this field include corporate involvement, and potential threats to {{Biosafety]] and Biosecurity. In an effort to inform opinion about synthetic biology, the ETC Group has released several comic-style illustrations regarding "Synthia", the cell with the first synthetic genome created by Craig Venter and the J. Craig Venter Institute. The illustration titled "The Story of Synthia" has also been adapted into a short video that can be viewed on YouTube.

On December 16, 2010, the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues released a report that recommended self-regulation by synthetic biologists, stating that the infant technology posed few risks to society. This decision was strongly opposed by Jim Thomas of the ETC Group, who referred to the recommendations by the commission as "disappointingly empty and timid". The ETC group joined a group of over 50 environmental groups calling for a moratorium on synthetic biology in a letter to government officials that referred to results of the commission as "irresponsible and dangerous" and stated that "self-regulation amounts to no regulation".

On January 23, 2012, UC Berkeley's Richmond Field Station was chosen for the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab's second campus. In a news conference meant to address the concerns surrounding synthetic biology at the local, national, and international level, five panelists including Jim Thomas of ETC Group spoke on the risks associated with synthetic biology. The panel refers to the laboratory's association with UC Berkeley as a "shiny veneer" for a poorly regulated industry with dangerous consequences, and Thomas referred to the "1.6 billion dollar industry" as "genetic engineering on steroids".

Synthetic Biology
The ETC group publicly campaigns for increased regulation in the emerging scientific field of Synthetic Biology, which they refer to as "extreme genetic engineering". The groups major areas of concern surrounding this field include corporate involvement, and potential threats to {{Biosafety]] and Biosecurity. In an effort to inform opinion about synthetic biology, the ETC Group has released several comic-style illustrations regarding "Synthia", the cell with the first synthetic genome created by Craig Venter and the J. Craig Venter Institute. The illustration titled "The Story of Synthia" has also been adapted into a short video that can be viewed on YouTube.

On December 16, 2010, the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues released a report that recommended self-regulation by synthetic biologists, stating that the infant technology posed few risks to society. This decision was strongly opposed by Jim Thomas of the ETC Group, who referred to the recommendations by the commission as "disappointingly empty and timid". The ETC group joined a group of over 50 environmental groups calling for a moratorium on synthetic biology in a letter to government officials that referred to results of the commission as "irresponsible and dangerous" and stated that "self-regulation amounts to no regulation".

On January 23, 2012, UC Berkeley's Richmond Field Station was chosen for the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab's second campus. In a news conference meant to address the concerns surrounding synthetic biology at the local, national, and international level, five panelists including Jim Thomas of ETC Group, spoke on the risks associated with synthetic biology. The panel refers to the laboratory's association with UC Berkeley as a "shiny veneer" for a poorly regulated industry with dangerous consequences, and Thomas referred to the "1.6 billion dollar industry" as "genetic engineering on steroids".

Venter
In 2010, Venter's group announced they had been able to assemble a complete genome of millions of base pairs, insert it into a cell, and cause that cell to start replicating. To create this cell, the DNA code was transcribed as a computer file, edited with new code, sequenced by Blue Heron Bio Company, stitched together by yeast and other cells, and finally transplanted into a cell without any genetic information. The cell divided and was "entirely controlled by (the) new genome". This cell has been referred to by Venter as the "first synthetic cell", and was created at a cost of over 40 million dollars. There is some debate within the scientific community over whether this cell can be considered completely synthetic, and biomedical engineer James Collins explains that "it is tough to draw where the line is". Venter plans to patent his experimental cells, stating that "they are pretty clearly human inventions".

In 2010, Venter's group announced they had been able to assemble a complete genome of millions of base pairs, insert it into a cell, and cause that cell to start replicating. To create this cell, the DNA code was transcribed as a computer file, edited with new code, sequenced by the Blue Heron Bio Company, stitched together by yeast and other cells, and finally transplanted into a cell absent of any prior genetic information. The cell divided and was "entirely controlled by (the) new genome". This cell has been referred to by Venter as the "first synthetic cell", and was created at a cost of over 40 million dollars. There is some debate within the scientific community over whether this cell can be considered completely synthetic, and biomedical engineer James Collins explains that "it is tough to draw where the line is". Venter plans to patent his experimental cells, stating that "they are pretty clearly human inventions".