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The "enhanced" DNA escapes into the wild where a new pathogen spreads over earth. All life is defenseless against the bizzare genetic alphabet...

gmarx 11y ago
Not sure. The behavior you posit sounds like a virus, but the regular cells would lack the machinery to translate the artificial genes. Defenses against bacteria are mostly directed against surface proteins and these proposed organisms would have regular proteins
- Karunamon 11y ago
  Or a prion - not really a virus, but an agent that causes the body to misbehave, almost by accident.
  - hliyan 11y ago
    A misfolded protein? That sounds more likely with this type of DNA, doesn't it?
    - gmarx 11y ago
      Considering how rare prions are I don't consider it likely that an escaped artificial DNA organism would accidentally produce one
dnautics 11y ago
And since p and z are synthesized in the lab how would this escaped organism eat?
- gherkin0 11y ago
  It would have to have evolved or be designed to be able to synthesize them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nucleotide#Synthesis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nucleotide#Synthesis
- sciencerobot 11y ago
  Life finds a way.
  - dnautics 11y ago
    Why hasn't life found a better way to fix nitrogen yet? Nitrogenase is a godawful enzyme... Wastes three hydrogen gas molecules for each turn of the crank.
gherkin0 11y ago
Organisms with the new base pairs probably wouldn't have so much of an advantage that they completely replace all life that currently exists. However, it does raise an interesting question if some future species would be able to figure out evolution and the origins of life, since there would literally be intelligently-designed organisms running around.
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
Dylan16807 11y ago
Pathogens are not fought by attacking their DNA. It's not going to make any difference, except that it's harder to breed it with anything else.
- viraptor 11y ago
  Isn't this exactly how bacteria fights viruses? That is - by cutting known dna patterns using restriction enzymes. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_enzyme https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_enzyme

gmarx 11y ago

Not sure. The behavior you posit sounds like a virus, but the regular cells would lack the machinery to translate the artificial genes. Defenses against bacteria are mostly directed against surface proteins and these proposed organisms would have regular proteins

Karunamon 11y ago
Or a prion - not really a virus, but an agent that causes the body to misbehave, almost by accident.
- hliyan 11y ago
  A misfolded protein? That sounds more likely with this type of DNA, doesn't it?
  - gmarx 11y ago
    Considering how rare prions are I don't consider it likely that an escaped artificial DNA organism would accidentally produce one

dnautics 11y ago

And since p and z are synthesized in the lab how would this escaped organism eat?

gherkin0 11y ago
It would have to have evolved or be designed to be able to synthesize them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nucleotide#Synthesis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nucleotide#Synthesis
sciencerobot 11y ago
Life finds a way.
- dnautics 11y ago
  Why hasn't life found a better way to fix nitrogen yet? Nitrogenase is a godawful enzyme... Wastes three hydrogen gas molecules for each turn of the crank.

gherkin0 11y ago

Organisms with the new base pairs probably wouldn't have so much of an advantage that they completely replace all life that currently exists. However, it does raise an interesting question if some future species would be able to figure out evolution and the origins of life, since there would literally be intelligently-designed organisms running around.

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

Dylan16807 11y ago

Pathogens are not fought by attacking their DNA. It's not going to make any difference, except that it's harder to breed it with anything else.

viraptor 11y ago
Isn't this exactly how bacteria fights viruses? That is - by cutting known dna patterns using restriction enzymes. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_enzyme https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_enzyme