A roadmap toward the synthesis of life

Christine M.E. Kriebisch; Olga Bantysh; Lorena Baranda Pellejero; Andrea Belluati; Eva Bertosin; Kun Dai; Maria de Roy; Hailin Fu; Nicola Galvanetto; Julianne M. Gibbs; Samuel Santhosh Gomez; Gaetano Granatelli; Alessandra Griffo; Maria Guix; Cenk Onur Gurdap; Johannes Harth-Kitzerow; Ivar S. Haugerud; Gregor Häfner; Pranay Jaiswal; Sadaf Javed; Ashkan Karimi; Shuzo Kato; Brigitte A.K. Kriebisch; Sudarshana Laha; Pao Wan Lee; Wojciech P. Lipinski; Thomas Matreux; Thomas C.T. Michaels; Erik Poppleton; Alexander Ruf; Annemiek D. Slootbeek; Iris B.A. Smokers; Héctor Soria-Carrera; Alessandro Sorrenti; Michele Stasi; Alisdair Stevenson; Advait Thatte; Mai Tran; Merlijn H.I. van Haren; Hidde D. Vuijk; Shelley F.J. Wickham; Pablo Zambrano; Katarzyna P. Adamala; Karen Alim; Ebbe Sloth Andersen; Claudia Bonfio; Dieter Braun; Erwin Frey; Ulrich Gerland; Wilhelm T.S. Huck; Frank Jülicher; Nadanai Laohakunakorn; L. Mahadavan; Sijbren Otto; James Saenz; Petra Schwille; Kerstin Göpfrich; Christoph A. Weber; Job Boekhoven

doi:10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

A roadmap toward the synthesis of life

Christine M.E. Kriebisch, Olga Bantysh, Lorena Baranda Pellejero, Andrea Belluati, Eva Bertosin, Kun Dai, Maria de Roy, Hailin Fu, Nicola Galvanetto, Julianne M. Gibbs, Samuel Santhosh Gomez, Gaetano Granatelli, Alessandra Griffo, Maria Guix, Cenk Onur Gurdap, Johannes Harth-Kitzerow, Ivar S. Haugerud, Gregor Häfner, Pranay Jaiswal, Sadaf JavedAshkan Karimi, Shuzo Kato, Brigitte A.K. Kriebisch, Sudarshana Laha, Pao Wan Lee, Wojciech P. Lipinski, Thomas Matreux, Thomas C.T. Michaels, Erik Poppleton, Alexander Ruf, Annemiek D. Slootbeek, Iris B.A. Smokers, Héctor Soria-Carrera, Alessandro Sorrenti, Michele Stasi, Alisdair Stevenson, Advait Thatte, Mai Tran, Merlijn H.I. van Haren, Hidde D. Vuijk, Shelley F.J. Wickham, Pablo Zambrano, Katarzyna P. Adamala, Karen Alim, Ebbe Sloth Andersen, Claudia Bonfio, Dieter Braun, Erwin Frey, Ulrich Gerland, Wilhelm T.S. Huck, Frank Jülicher, Nadanai Laohakunakorn, L. Mahadavan, Sijbren Otto, James Saenz, Petra Schwille, Kerstin Göpfrich, Christoph A. Weber, Job Boekhoven

Genetics, Cell Biology and Development (CBS)

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

The synthesis of life from non-living matter has captivated and divided scientists for centuries. This bold goal aims at unraveling the fundamental principles of life and leveraging its unique features, such as its resilience, sustainability, and ability to evolve. Synthetic life represents more than an academic milestone—it has the potential to revolutionize biotechnology, medicine, and materials science. Although the fields of synthetic biology, systems chemistry, and biophysics have made great strides toward synthetic life, progress has been hindered by social, philosophical, and technical challenges, such as vague goals, misaligned interdisciplinary efforts, and incompletely addressing public and ethical concerns. Our perspective offers a roadmap toward the synthesis of life based on discussions during a 2-week workshop with scientists from around the globe.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	102399
Journal	Chem
Volume	11
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399
State	Published - Mar 13 2025

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s)

Keywords

biophysics
bottom-up synthetic biology
open-ended evolution
SDG14: Life below water
SDG15: Life on land
SDG3: Good health and well-being
SDG9: Industry, innovation, and infrastructure
self-replication
synthesis of life
synthetic cell
systems chemistry

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

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Kriebisch, C. M. E., Bantysh, O., Baranda Pellejero, L., Belluati, A., Bertosin, E., Dai, K., de Roy, M., Fu, H., Galvanetto, N., Gibbs, J. M., Gomez, S. S., Granatelli, G., Griffo, A., Guix, M., Gurdap, C. O., Harth-Kitzerow, J., Haugerud, I. S., Häfner, G., Jaiswal, P., ... Boekhoven, J. (2025). A roadmap toward the synthesis of life. Chem, 11(3), Article 102399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

Kriebisch, CME, Bantysh, O, Baranda Pellejero, L, Belluati, A, Bertosin, E, Dai, K, de Roy, M, Fu, H, Galvanetto, N, Gibbs, JM, Gomez, SS, Granatelli, G, Griffo, A, Guix, M, Gurdap, CO, Harth-Kitzerow, J, Haugerud, IS, Häfner, G, Jaiswal, P, Javed, S, Karimi, A, Kato, S, Kriebisch, BAK, Laha, S, Lee, PW, Lipinski, WP, Matreux, T, Michaels, TCT, Poppleton, E, Ruf, A, Slootbeek, AD, Smokers, IBA, Soria-Carrera, H, Sorrenti, A, Stasi, M, Stevenson, A, Thatte, A, Tran, M, van Haren, MHI, Vuijk, HD, Wickham, SFJ, Zambrano, P, Adamala, KP, Alim, K, Andersen, ES, Bonfio, C, Braun, D, Frey, E, Gerland, U, Huck, WTS, Jülicher, F, Laohakunakorn, N, Mahadavan, L, Otto, S, Saenz, J, Schwille, P, Göpfrich, K, Weber, CA & Boekhoven, J 2025, 'A roadmap toward the synthesis of life', Chem, vol. 11, no. 3, 102399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

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title = "A roadmap toward the synthesis of life",

abstract = "The synthesis of life from non-living matter has captivated and divided scientists for centuries. This bold goal aims at unraveling the fundamental principles of life and leveraging its unique features, such as its resilience, sustainability, and ability to evolve. Synthetic life represents more than an academic milestone—it has the potential to revolutionize biotechnology, medicine, and materials science. Although the fields of synthetic biology, systems chemistry, and biophysics have made great strides toward synthetic life, progress has been hindered by social, philosophical, and technical challenges, such as vague goals, misaligned interdisciplinary efforts, and incompletely addressing public and ethical concerns. Our perspective offers a roadmap toward the synthesis of life based on discussions during a 2-week workshop with scientists from around the globe.",

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author = "Kriebisch, {Christine M.E.} and Olga Bantysh and {Baranda Pellejero}, Lorena and Andrea Belluati and Eva Bertosin and Kun Dai and {de Roy}, Maria and Hailin Fu and Nicola Galvanetto and Gibbs, {Julianne M.} and Gomez, {Samuel Santhosh} and Gaetano Granatelli and Alessandra Griffo and Maria Guix and Gurdap, {Cenk Onur} and Johannes Harth-Kitzerow and Haugerud, {Ivar S.} and Gregor H{\"a}fner and Pranay Jaiswal and Sadaf Javed and Ashkan Karimi and Shuzo Kato and Kriebisch, {Brigitte A.K.} and Sudarshana Laha and Lee, {Pao Wan} and Lipinski, {Wojciech P.} and Thomas Matreux and Michaels, {Thomas C.T.} and Erik Poppleton and Alexander Ruf and Slootbeek, {Annemiek D.} and Smokers, {Iris B.A.} and H{\'e}ctor Soria-Carrera and Alessandro Sorrenti and Michele Stasi and Alisdair Stevenson and Advait Thatte and Mai Tran and {van Haren}, {Merlijn H.I.} and Vuijk, {Hidde D.} and Wickham, {Shelley F.J.} and Pablo Zambrano and Adamala, {Katarzyna P.} and Karen Alim and Andersen, {Ebbe Sloth} and Claudia Bonfio and Dieter Braun and Erwin Frey and Ulrich Gerland and Huck, {Wilhelm T.S.} and Frank J{\"u}licher and Nadanai Laohakunakorn and L. Mahadavan and Sijbren Otto and James Saenz and Petra Schwille and Kerstin G{\"o}pfrich and Weber, {Christoph A.} and Job Boekhoven",

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doi = "10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399",

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AU - Kriebisch, Christine M.E.

AU - Bantysh, Olga

AU - Baranda Pellejero, Lorena

AU - Belluati, Andrea

AU - Bertosin, Eva

AU - Dai, Kun

AU - de Roy, Maria

AU - Fu, Hailin

AU - Galvanetto, Nicola

AU - Gibbs, Julianne M.

AU - Gomez, Samuel Santhosh

AU - Granatelli, Gaetano

AU - Griffo, Alessandra

AU - Guix, Maria

AU - Gurdap, Cenk Onur

AU - Harth-Kitzerow, Johannes

AU - Haugerud, Ivar S.

AU - Häfner, Gregor

AU - Jaiswal, Pranay

AU - Javed, Sadaf

AU - Karimi, Ashkan

AU - Kato, Shuzo

AU - Kriebisch, Brigitte A.K.

AU - Laha, Sudarshana

AU - Lee, Pao Wan

AU - Lipinski, Wojciech P.

AU - Matreux, Thomas

AU - Michaels, Thomas C.T.

AU - Poppleton, Erik

AU - Ruf, Alexander

AU - Slootbeek, Annemiek D.

AU - Smokers, Iris B.A.

AU - Soria-Carrera, Héctor

AU - Sorrenti, Alessandro

AU - Stasi, Michele

AU - Stevenson, Alisdair

AU - Thatte, Advait

AU - Tran, Mai

AU - van Haren, Merlijn H.I.

AU - Vuijk, Hidde D.

AU - Wickham, Shelley F.J.

AU - Zambrano, Pablo

AU - Adamala, Katarzyna P.

AU - Alim, Karen

AU - Andersen, Ebbe Sloth

AU - Bonfio, Claudia

AU - Braun, Dieter

AU - Frey, Erwin

AU - Gerland, Ulrich

AU - Huck, Wilhelm T.S.

AU - Jülicher, Frank

AU - Laohakunakorn, Nadanai

AU - Mahadavan, L.

AU - Otto, Sijbren

AU - Saenz, James

AU - Schwille, Petra

AU - Göpfrich, Kerstin

AU - Weber, Christoph A.

AU - Boekhoven, Job

PY - 2025/3/13

Y1 - 2025/3/13

N2 - The synthesis of life from non-living matter has captivated and divided scientists for centuries. This bold goal aims at unraveling the fundamental principles of life and leveraging its unique features, such as its resilience, sustainability, and ability to evolve. Synthetic life represents more than an academic milestone—it has the potential to revolutionize biotechnology, medicine, and materials science. Although the fields of synthetic biology, systems chemistry, and biophysics have made great strides toward synthetic life, progress has been hindered by social, philosophical, and technical challenges, such as vague goals, misaligned interdisciplinary efforts, and incompletely addressing public and ethical concerns. Our perspective offers a roadmap toward the synthesis of life based on discussions during a 2-week workshop with scientists from around the globe.

AB - The synthesis of life from non-living matter has captivated and divided scientists for centuries. This bold goal aims at unraveling the fundamental principles of life and leveraging its unique features, such as its resilience, sustainability, and ability to evolve. Synthetic life represents more than an academic milestone—it has the potential to revolutionize biotechnology, medicine, and materials science. Although the fields of synthetic biology, systems chemistry, and biophysics have made great strides toward synthetic life, progress has been hindered by social, philosophical, and technical challenges, such as vague goals, misaligned interdisciplinary efforts, and incompletely addressing public and ethical concerns. Our perspective offers a roadmap toward the synthesis of life based on discussions during a 2-week workshop with scientists from around the globe.

KW - biophysics

KW - bottom-up synthetic biology

KW - open-ended evolution

KW - SDG14: Life below water

KW - SDG15: Life on land

KW - SDG3: Good health and well-being

KW - SDG9: Industry, innovation, and infrastructure

KW - self-replication

KW - synthesis of life

KW - synthetic cell

KW - systems chemistry

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U2 - 10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

DO - 10.1016/j.chempr.2024.102399

M3 - Review article

AN - SCOPUS:85218776933

SN - 2451-9308

VL - 11

JO - Chem

JF - Chem

IS - 3

M1 - 102399

ER -

A roadmap toward the synthesis of life

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Publisher link

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