The influence of synthetic biology on our everyday life | Kelly Hamers | TEDxDelftSalon

What is synthetic biology? And why does this subject make us feel so uneasy? What more can it do for us? And what is the correlation between synthetic biology, gluten allergy, and a pair of scissors?

While Kelly Hamers was studying at the Delft University of Technology, a teacher told the story of the first patient to be treated with penicillin. Reserve constable Albert Alexander (1897-1941) died after the hospital had run out of penicillin to treat him. Imagine being halfway through your recovery and then being told, "I am sorry, sir, we ran out of medicine." Synthetic biology ensures that something like that does not happen again.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Let's start our journey today
by traveling back in time

to the Stone Age, around 10,000 B.C.

If you don't know what period I'm talking
about, just think of the Flintstones.

It is caveman Fred and his wife Wilma
that started the technological revolution.

Farming, most noticeably
the farming of wheat.

Through the ages, the cultivation
and consumption of wheat increases

and is spread all over the world.

Now, we fast forward
to something like 2008.

There's more awareness
around celiac disease and gluten,

which is present
in barley, rye, and wheat.

This results in a completely
new revolution,

and this time, gluten intolerance
is spread all over the world.

Or so it seems.

The thing is a lot of people think
they are gluten intolerant,

but they don't really know for sure.

This is due to the inadequate
diagnosis of this intolerance.

Currently, the best way to determine
if you are gluten intolerant

is to remove gluten from your diet,

and please read with me from the slide,

and see how you feel without it.

Wow! That is some impressive
advanced technological approach.

We can send people into space,

we can move separate atoms
underneath a microscope,

but we're unable to accurately determine
if someone is intolerant

to a compound present in breads,
pizza, cookies, and whatnot.

Now, imagine an approach
that would be worthy of the 21st century.

We go to the supermarket

and make our way to the section
where they sell medicines and vitamins.

Usually in that section, you can
also find pregnancy tests.

What is easier than buying a small device,

peeing on it, and just
reading out the results?

What if you could buy such a test,
not only for gluten intolerance,

but also for cat allergy
and other allergies?

What if you could bring a small tester
with you when you go hiking

to test for lyme disease
when you've been bitten by a tick?

The reality is that currently
blood tests are most common

to determine if you have
an allergy or a disease.

Maybe some of you have experienced this.

So the first step is to make
an appointment and go to the doctor

and have some of your blood collected.

Then they have your blood,
and the fun begins.

Your sample goes through a lengthy process
with various analytical steps,

but in the end, some result
that the doctor can interpret.

Finally, the doctor can come and tell you

that you might be a little allergic
to almost everything they tested,

as happened to a friend of mine.

So obviously, the current method
has some drawbacks.

Firstly, you need
to actually go to the doctor,

which is not that convenient
when you're in the middle of a hike.

Furthermore, the method
also takes quite a long time.

The tests themselves
take a couple of hours,

and it's usually days
until you get back your results.

For me, the biggest problem

was that I wasn't allowed
to eat anything beforehand,

and I almost passed out
because I was so hungry.

Some people are uncomfortable
with all these barriers.

Others have their blood tested
too late or not at all.

Especially in cases such as lyme disease,
this can cause some serious health issues.

If the infection is not detected
and treated in time,

you might end up in a wheelchair
for the remainder of your life,

experiencing excruciating joint pain.

Now, I am a student here
at the Delft University of Technology,

and I am part of a team participating
in a worldwide competition.

And it is our dream to realize
the simple but sophisticated test,

I mentioned before,
for allergies and diseases.

I hope by now you understand

why it is so important
to improve the current methods

and that we have your full support.

There is just this tiny
aspect of our project

that will probably make you
a little less supportive.

That's the fact that it's based
on a genetically modified bacterium.

What? Genetic modification?

It's a scary subject,

and people usually freak out a little
when this topic is mentioned,

or synthetic biology
in general is mentioned.

So I'd like to examine
it a little further.

Now, as a kid I was, and I still am,
a very passionate reader.

The Harry Potter books,
The Da Vinci Code series,

Steven King thrillers - I read them all.

Sometimes I would get so lost in a story

that I could not shake it off me
while already in bed.

Then this funny thing happened,

something most of us have experienced
at some point in our lives.

You start to imagine
monsters under your bed.

Without an actual cause to be afraid,

your brain comes up
with these very creative, scary thoughts.

Now, we're all adults here, and we can
laugh at these little childish problems.

I mean come on, monsters under the bed?

We've grown over troubles like that.

Or have we?

I think synthetic biology is the adult
version of the monster under the bed.

We read something about it
in the newspaper,

and it gives us this uneasy feeling,
without actually knowing what it is.

Mostly, I think
it's a fear of the unknown.

If you go onto the street
and ask random passersby

what they know about
and think of synthetic biology,

the answers are usually a little vague.

Like, I've heard people calling it
"manipulation of nature."

This is often mentioned
in combination with GMO plants.

It is especially terms like "manipulation"
that have this negative ring to it.

I'd like you to step back from these
negative vibes and get back to the core.

Synthetic biology, what is it?

Now, we live in the 21st century,

so we can just look up
the definition online.

But this just results
in some very elaborate sentences

that actually explain very little.

So I'd like to use iGEM as an example.

iGEM is the worldwide competition
I mentioned before,

and iGEM stands for "International
Genetically Engineered Machines."

On the iGEM website it says, "For over ten
years, we've been encouraging students

to work together
to solve real-world challenges

by building genetically engineered
biological systems

with standard, interchangeable parts."

Now, a core compound of synthetic biology,

actually all of us, is DNA,

the code in ourselves
that forms the blueprint

for what we look like
and for all cellular processes.

Some of the techniques we employ
involve genetic engineering,

which comes down to the cutting
and pasting of this DNA.

Additionally, we can also read DNA codes
and write DNA sequences ourselves.

However, I can imagine
this to still be a little vague.

So let's discuss the three things
that biological systems are very good at,

which is making, breaking, and detecting.

For example, there was this iGEM team
that focused on creating an alternate way

for the production
of an antimalarial drug.

There's making.

Another team focused
on obtaining a protein

able to efficiently
and quickly degrade plastic

to treat, for example,
the plastic soup in the ocean.

Breaking.

Last but not least, we hope
that our simple but sophisticated test

can be used to detect
antibiotic-resistant bacteria,

so that the antibiotic usage
can be adapted accordingly.

As you've probably noticed, I am
a student in the synthetic biology field,

so of course, I think
it's going to be useful.

However, I'm also very aware of the risks
that go paired with genetic engineering,

meaning we can actually change DNA.

With the wrong intention,
this can cause some serious health risks.

Let's compare it to a pair of scissors.

As it just so happens,
I have a pair with me.

As a child, we all learned that we should
not run around while carrying a pair,

and that if we really
have to walk with them,

we should do it like this, right?

And we don't start out
by using the real thing, too.

I still remember the struggles

when I tried to cut anything
with blunt, childproof scissors.

My point is a pair of scissors
can be dangerous,

but when they are used responsibly,
they form a very handy, valuable tool.

And the exact same thing
is true for synthetic biology.

There is, of course, this one difference.

And that is that it is easier for you
to trust me with this pair of scissors

than it is for you to trust
me with synthetic biology.

Why?

Well, if I go walking around like this
with my pair of scissors,

you all know I am doing it wrong

because you have been taught
how to carry them as well.

However, in the case of synthetic biology,

it's much more unlikely that you can tell
when I'm making a mistake.

Most of you are not familiar
with the safety rules I've been taught

to practice synthetic biology responsibly.

But should this stop us
from curing diseases?

Saving environments?

And generally trying to make
the world a better place?

I hope you agree with me

that synthetic biology
can be of huge benefit to all humankind.

Yes, there are risks,

but as long as it's practiced responsibly,
it poses no threat to us.

In that sense, our fear of the unknown
might actually be a bigger threat

than synthetic biology itself.

To quote from Dan Brown's "Inferno,"

"Only one form of contagion
travels faster than a virus.

And that's fear."

So I hope you all sleep well tonight.

The monsters under your bed
are just shadows,

and we can shine a light on them.

Thank you.

(Applause)