Designer toxinsConvergence of chemistry and biology raises concerns about designer toxins
The convergence of chemistry and biology is providing major benefits to humankind, particularly in health care, alternative energy sources, and in environmental control – and when combined with other advances, particularly in nanotechnology, it is also being exploited in developing improved defensive countermeasures against chemical and biological warfare agents. This convergence, however, has also raised concerns that biotechnology could be applied to the production of new toxic chemicals, bioregulators, and toxins. A new report from OPCW says that the potential for scaling up biological processes for large scale production of chemicals of concern is still limited, but biomediated processes might still be effective for producing weaponizable quantities of toxins which are lethal to humans in microgram or lower dosage.
Bulk and fine chemicals are being produced increasingly using biologically mediated processes, for example, by microbial fermentation or using enzymes as catalysts. It is estimated that approximately 10 percent of chemical production volume will use such processes by 2020. This trend is being driven by commercial and environmental factors, and particularly by competition for conventional feedstocks.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) notes that key enabling technologies have resulted in a rapidly expanding capability to redesign or manipulate organisms for specific purposes, and the ability to design and engineer improved enzymes (such as through metabolic engineering, enzyme engineering, synthetic biology, or traditional recombinant DNA technology).
Although there are concerns that biotechnology could be applied to the production of new toxic chemicals, bioregulators, and toxins, the temporary working group (TWG), in its Convergence of Chemistry and Biology: Report of the Scientific Advisory Board’s Temporary Working Group, assessed that potential applications to scheduled chemicals are currently limited. Scaling up a new biological process will continue to take a considerable investment of capital, resources, and time; these considerations could reduce the likelihood of using such methods for large scale production of chemicals of concern, however, biomediated processes might still be effective for producing weaponizable quantities of toxins which are lethal to adult humans in microgram or lower dosage. The report also noted that similar concerns were raised in the early days of recombinant DNA technology.
In parallel to biotechnological innovation, substantial advances have been made in the chemical synthesis of molecules of biological origin. Commercial DNA synthesis has advanced to the point where whole genomes (an organism’s total genetic material) can be synthesized and compiled, and viruses, including influenza and coronavirus, have been reconstructed. Parallel research has enabled the rational engineering of viral capsids.
The report says that Advances in the semi-automated synthesis of peptides have enhanced the ability to synthesize bioregulatory chemicals that mediate functioning of the body and other peptides with high physiological activity. Increased sophistication in organic chemistry has enabled the chemical synthesis of increasingly more complex biological molecules, including toxins, although generally on a scale that poses no threat to the purposes of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
