Nobel scientist happy to 'play god' with DNA

Leading scholars and Nobel laureates said yesterday that scientists have no inherent inherent in the idea of ​​"playing God" by changing the genetic nature of life.

Jim Watson, who discovered the DNA structure with Francis Crick in 1953, responded to a number of genetic engineering critics who thought that scientific engineers were powerful enough to play the role of God.

"But to be honest, Dr. Watson said at the annual general meeting of the Party Council and the Scientific Committee, who will do if scientists do not play God.

Dr. Watson stated that the human genome project is aimed at ranking all 3 billion "letters" of human genetic code, allowing scientists to treat or predict many intractable diseases It was.

He said that the complete sequence of the human genome will be completed soon, scientists can identify about 70,000 genes hidden in the code. "We now have a script of life, and you can admit actors in the play."

Dr. Watson, Chairman of the Main State Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, asked politicians to intervene in the "mess" of DNA patents, said the lawyer was unable to understand the purpose of the DNA breakthrough mainly. Already used

Dr. Watson said the success of a patent application depends on whether the inventor can prove that it is not obvious and useful. "But is not it obvious to anyone?" He said to a committee that many patent attorneys do not know the potential uses of DNA inventions. "If it is not obvious to monkeys, they will give you a patent."

But Dr. Watson said the DNA patent application does not meet long-term benefits of society. "We want to use this information as widely as possible."

This concern has existed for a long time; since at least the scientists invented recombinant DNA, the general public has maintained a view of changing intellectual heritage. David Baltimore, who received the Nobel Prize, questioned whether his innovative research points out "genetic differences rather than environmental differences" early in the 1970s. I said, dream. It is known that genes contribute to intelligence, but it has a broad and subtle effect. Gene interacts in a complicated relationship, creating a nervous system that can not reverse engineer. Indeed, computational scientists who want to understand how genes interact to build the best network faced a kind of severe limitation implied by the so-called travel salesman problem.

By the middle of the 20th century scientists began to solve the complex problems of chemistry and biology behind cancer. Watson and Click won the Nobel Prize in 1962 for discovering the DNA helix. Later scientists learned how genes function and how they are destroyed by mutation. Scientists have discovered that cancer can be caused by chemicals (carcinogens), radiation, viruses, and have also been handed down by their ancestors. Most carcinogens destroy DNA and cause abnormal cell proliferation. Cancer cells with damaged DNA do not die, and normal cells with damaged DNA die. In the 1970s scientists discovered two important gene families.

Thinking about DNA immediately reminds two scientists who discovered DNA and received the Nobel prize like James Watson and Francis Crick. However, her research played a role in the research of Watson and Click, but the name that does not appear to appear is the name of Rosalind Franklin. She died in 1961 and can not be listed as a recipient of this award (honor, James Watson admits it deserves it). I do not know why she is not known for her role in the history of science.