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‘Unprecedented risk’ to life on Earth: Scientists call for halt on ‘mirror life’ microbe research
(www.theguardian.com)
Evil microbes with little goatees..
this post was submitted on 13 Dec 2024
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...it's not cool, actually
This seems like something that really is a minimal risk. Pathogens are pathogens because they are able to make use of our bodies as raw materials to reproduce. Unless they are able to make use of both enantiomers in their biology, there's little benefit to dedicating resources to colonizing us.
Probably a bigger concern would be outcompeting and displacing organisms lower on the food chain.
If mirrored microbes require mirrored antibodies to be killed that is something no living thing on earth has the ability to create.
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Good point, though I find the part of the commentary relevant:
Although we were initially skeptical that mirror bacteria could pose major risks, we have become deeply concerned. We were uncertain about the feasibility of synthesizing mirror bacteria but have concluded that technological progress will likely make this possible. We were uncertain about the consequences of mirror bacterial infection in humans and animals, but a close examination of existing studies led us to conclude that infections could be severe. Unlike previous discussions of mirror life, we also realized that generalist heterotroph mirror bacteria might find a range of nutrients in animal hosts and the environment and thus would not be intrinsically biocontained
Unlike previous discussions of mirror life, we also realized that generalist heterotroph mirror bacteria might find a range of nutrients in animal hosts and the environment and thus would not be intrinsically biocontained
That is basically my suspicion, from my knowledge at this time. Pathogenicity as a danger seems questionable based upon how incompatible known life is with the opposite enantiomers of its basic building blocks (though, if artificial "mirror" bacteria were able to develop enzymes to change the chirality of the proteins, etc, it would probably be bad).
Going on that energy-intensive chemistry being tricky to accomplish, it is far more likely that generalists could displace extant microorganisms that may be unable to use their evolved defenses effectively. This could result in cascading food web disruptions until either extant life adapts, or complex organisms go extinct through starvation.
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And your background in biology is..?
You read what they wrote and became sceptical of their credentials? I mean, it's healthy to be cautiously sceptical of anything you read/hear to an extent. But to immediately and without any further discussion, call them out in a patronising and condescending way is wild.
It makes me want to know if you have a background in biology. Since you so readily dispute someone else's. Someone who, at least on the surface, seems to know what they are talking about.
In fact, why do you give so much credit to the legitimacy of the article and its writer, there might be a "38 strong group" of nobel laureates and experts warning about this, but the writer of the article adds the spin. The writer decides how to portray the warnings and their urgency. They might be overselling this. And since there is little to no citation in the article, i am more inclined to question the articles' legitimacy before i query this poster....
Why do you give so much credit to the legitimacy of the random poster on internet?
This is actually a fair and good question to ask. Being too credulous of things read on the Internet has shown rather problematic in recent years. Taking everything written in academic journals, especially opinion pieces not based upon peer-reviewed evidence, without skepticism has shown to be problematic since before the Internet, however.
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Undergrad in biochemistry with a year research internship. Also, a long, AuADHD-fueled interest with chemistry, industrial microbiology, and reading research papers. Yourself?
Ok, on one side we have undergrad and on other international group of Nobel laureates and other experts. Who is probably right..
Nobel Laureates have never made ridiculous statements that didn't mesh well with scientific evidence. Kary Mullis, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, credited with discovering PCR would never be quoted as refuting the evidence of HIV as causative in AIDS, cited in a journal article questioning the evidence, and then the journal article retracted due to it being inaccurately labeled as "Hypothesis and Theory" instead of opinion, factually inaccurate, and dangerous - oh. Oh no:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6830318/
Next thing, you'll tell me that scientists are humans that are fallible and some of them sometimes engage in ethically-questionable activities and sensationalism for profit.
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i do not disagree, but probability of who is right is not on the side of random lemmy poster in this case.
Let's refresh your memory on what the original poster you criticized said since you think this is about who is right:
This seems like something that really is a minimal risk. Pathogens are pathogens because they are able to make use of our bodies as raw materials to reproduce. Unless they are able to make use of both enantiomers in their biology, there’s little benefit to dedicating resources to colonizing us.
Probably a bigger concern would be outcompeting and displacing organisms lower on the food chain.
This is someone forming an opinion based on what they know so far. They are clearly a good scientist because they are not making any factual claims here. They are, in fact, doing what any good scientist does and bringing up issues they see with the claims of other scientists.
They are not even saying it wouldn't be an overall problem and I would not be at all surprised if they modify their opinion, which was neither a claim nor a prediction, if they read the 299-page report, but you seem to want a formal rebuttal. A formal rebuttal and a peer review process do not require someone to have a degree and people without degrees have had papers published in scientific journals.
And if they came up with a formal rebuttal and allowed it to be peer-reviewed, would you even read it?
~~if~~ when they read the 299-page report
Yup. Planning to crack that open this weekend :).
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Obviously this individual wouldn't be asking unless they had a PhD in molecular nutology
Unless they are able to make use of both enantiomers in their biology
I wouldn't expect that sentence from someone without a background in biology for many, many reasons.
After browsing facebook for one hour I also got to the conclusion that all those people publishing in Science are lying. /s
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Maybe someone should build 50 underground silos.
Make sure you bring along a spare water chip.
"We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita; Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and, to impress him, takes on his multi-armed form and says, "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." ~ J. Robert Oppenheimer
Anyone feeling freaked out by this doesn't have anything to worry about. There's nothing you and I can do to stop the research. Go on and enjoy your life.
Well that depends on much you want the media and the internet to analyse your favourite Pokémon or your opinion on the merits of the Lorax vis-a-vis the Unabomber Manifesto.
The thing about that is if all this is for is research then I could have some hope that they'd actually stop.
If someone thinks there's profit to be made and that's what is driving the research then it's never going to stop unless they go bankrupt or it proves to be worthless... What happens to the world at large doesn't matter one bit to people chasing profit :(
Right. That's what i said.
So just enjoy what you have. Smile, chin up, tell your family and friends you love them. Don't stress over something you can't control.
Not with that attitude.
Good point.
Don't enjoy your life. Fuck it.
Would prions fall under this category?
no
the point of prions is that there's a naturally occurring protein in metastable state, and when contacted by a protein in more stable state it can transition to that more stable state. this way it's infective without being alive. there's nothing like this in nature, let alone commonly occurring
And here I thought my late 2024 anxiety level was maxed out already.
It gets worse. They are also working on mirror physics, where they launch orbiting observatories made of antimatter. What could possibly go wrong.
Antimatter does not replicate the way microbes do to be fair. It's dangerous to handle in large enough amounts obviously, be we don't have the energy to produce enough to create a serious danger nor the technology to store that amount at once.
Ya the total amount of antimatter ever produced is something insaly small like 10 nanograms
Activate the omega-13... 48 times.
I love the movie Galaxy Quest.
It’s a ROCK! IT DOESN'T HAVE ANY VULNERABLE SPOTS!
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