Scientists issue an urgent warning over lab-made 'mirror bacteria' that could wipe out mankind
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Leading scientists have issued an urgent warning over the 'unprecedented' risk posed by a lab-made life which could wipe out mankind. So-called 'mirror life' are synthetic organisms that are constructed out of mirrored versions of the molecules found in nature.
![[Scientists have called for a pause on the creation of 'mirror bacteria' since these would be able to bypass the immune defences of all life on Earth and lead to potentially deadly infections (stock image)]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/13/10/88172047-14189233-The_list_was_updated_because_of_climate_change_deforestation_and-a-3_1734086950866.jpg)
Experts warn that these mirror organisms would be 'invisible' to life on Earth, allowing them to slip past the immune defences of all known organisms. If mirror bacteria were to escape from the lab, there would be nothing to prevent them from establishing themselves in the wild and threatening plants, animals, and humans with lethal infections.
![[Unlike most of the world's deadliest pathogens (illustrated) there would be no way to defend against mirror bacteria. Mirror bacteria would also be able to infect any organism regardless of species, potentially leading to massive ecological damage and a devastating pandemic]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/13/10/88177521-14189233-The_above_shows_a_selection_of_pathogens_included_in_the_list_th-a-4_1734086963708.jpg)
The creation of mirror bacteria is at least a decade away but, in a 300-page technical review published in Science, the authors note that rapid progress is already being made. A group of 38 Nobel laureates and other experts, including some who have previously tried to create mirror life, are now calling for a pause on all new research.
Dr Vaughn Cooper, a microbiologist from the University of Pittsburgh and co-author of the paper, says: 'This form of life has never existed or evolved, consequently, all biological interactions would be different or likely wouldn’t work. 'We don’t want to limit that promise of synthetic biology, but building a mirror bacterium is not worth the risk.'.
38 leading scientists have issued an urgent warning over 'mirror life'. This is a form of artificial life in which all the biological molecules like DNA are mirrored. In the case of the DNA, this means the double-helix would spiral in the other direction (stock image).
