A major challenge is to create generic platforms for synthetic biology. These will improve the accessibility of the technology, especially in the developing world, and open the way to more repeatable experiments. Synthetic biology platforms could include artificial vesicles for catalysis of reactions and delivery of molecules,¹⁰ programmable systems for gluing proteins,¹¹ and microorganisms with minimal genomes that are more readily reprogrammed and rationally designed.¹² Ecosystems of synthetic organisms also have potential but are under-explored.¹³

In order to achieve the desired goals quickly and effectively, there is a need to develop new methods of designing synthetic organisms. Multiple avenues are being explored: some focus on designing organisms that exhibit goal-seeking and problem-solving behaviours,¹⁴ while others are aiming for an open-ended evolutionary process that will continue to develop and change.¹⁵

The opportunities of synthetic biology come with risk. Engineered organisms have considerable potential to harm humans and ecosystems intentionally or accidentally. Hence some synthetic biologists are devising ways to contain their engineered organisms:¹⁶ for instance, ensuring organisms can only survive when given a specific chemical that is not found in nature.¹⁷The best strategies will use multiple orthogonal control systems, providing several fail-safes to minimise the chances of escape.¹⁸

The most obvious potential is in chemistry and materials science, as microorganisms such as bacteria or yeast can be engineered to synthesise chemicals²² and materials.²³ In effect, living cells are used as factories.²⁴ Thanks to catalytic enzymes, biological systems can often perform syntheses at lower temperatures and pressures than traditional chemical systems, saving energy and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. There is untapped potential in the engineering of microbial communities and multicellularity, rather than single cells, for these purposes.²⁵

As well as purely biological systems, synthetic biology may be integrated with other forms of technology. For instance, there is growing interest in synthelectronics, which fuses electronics and synthetic biology.²⁶ Living photovoltaic solar cells²⁷ are one possible application.²⁸

An area of increasing interest is the use of synthetic biology to produce food and food ingredients. Examples of this include the use of microbial cells to produce specific molecules such as vitamins, the use of plant cells and biomass to make plant-based meat alternatives, or the use of animal cells to make cultivated meat.²⁹

Finally, many actors are attempting to apply synthetic biology to agriculture. For instance, it may be possible to re-engineer photosynthesis, the process by which green plants use sunlight to make sugars from carbon dioxide. More efficient photosynthesis could lead to increased crop yields.³⁰ In the longer term, it may also be possible to engineer the fates of plant cells, optimising the morphology of the plants for new environments.³¹

It is theoretically possible to use genome editing to treat genetic diseases.³⁶ Inherited diseases are a particularly tempting target. A number of technologies exist for precision genome editing of human cells,³⁷ and some in vivo experiments targeting conditions like mucopolysaccharidosis have already been conducted.³⁸ However, genome editing’s potential goes beyond genetic conditions. For instance, CRISPR-Cas may be used to treat viral infections by targeting the virus’s genome within human cells.³⁹ There is also potential for improving cancer treatments,⁴⁰ such as by engineering immune cells to kill tumours.⁴¹ To minimise the risk of off-target effects, improved maps of human genetic diversity are a prerequisite for such therapies.⁴²

Therapies based on synthetic cells⁴³ have shown promise for certain hard-to-treat conditions such as spinal muscular atrophy.⁴⁴ In some cases,⁴⁵ bacteria act as “living drugs”.⁴⁶ Controlling such cells remains a challenge,⁴⁷ but programmable synthetic receptor systems may offer a means of doing so.⁴⁸There have also been preliminary investigations into the benefits of modifying the skin microbiome.⁴⁹ Going beyond cells, engineered tissues have potential as drug-delivery systems,⁵⁰ while synthetic transplant organs and induced tissue regeneration remain distant but tantalising possibilities.⁵¹

There are multiple avenues for using synthetic biology to mitigate climate change. Algae and other cellular factories could be used to produce renewable fuels, offering a less land-intensive alternative to biofuels.⁵⁴ Notably, some early work has been done on engineering microbes to produce hydrogen.⁵⁵Unlike existing methods of hydrogen manufacture, this would be low- or zero-carbon.⁵⁶Similarly, microbes are being engineered for enhanced carbon capture, potentially removing carbon dioxide from the air.⁵⁷

The flow of pollutants into the environment may be reduced through the use of synthetic biology. For instance, chemical pesticides may be partially replaced by biotechnologies such as RNA interference for pest control or by engineering the pests themselves — using gene drives, for example.⁵⁸ Where pollutants are already present, engineered microbes may speed up their degradation.⁵⁹

Endangered species and ecosystems may be made more robust through synthetic biology.⁶⁰[56] Genome editing may be used to monitor threatened species or to identify the species making up harmful algal blooms.⁶¹ More radically, genome editors could enhance adaptive traits, for instance by making coral holobionts more tolerant of higher temperatures to protect coral reefs from climate change.⁶² Any such endeavours would need a reliable understanding of the ecosystems involved: in particular, it is important to gain a better understanding of microbial ecosystems, which are also threatened but are understudied.⁶³