Context matters: On the road to responsible biosafety technologies in synthetic biology.

Biosafety is a major challenge for developing for synthetic organisms. An early focus on application and their context could assist with the design of appropriate genetic safeguards.

Genetic Safeguards for Safety-by-design: So Close Yet So Far.

Safety-by-design (SbD) is paramount for risk management in synthetic biology, with genetic safeguards being a key technology for its implementation. While attractive in theory, the integration of genetic safeguards into SbD strategies is rarely exercised in practice, despite technological advances. Here we question why and what might be done about it.