The increasing availability and decreasing cost of custom synthetic nucleic acids presents risk of misuse. The authors provide recommendations to implement comprehensive screening and secure commercial nucleic acid synthesis services against misuse.
On-demand gene synthesis is a growing industry that has democratized access to customized synthetic nucleic acid products used in biological research. But the increasing availability and decreasing cost of custom synthetic nucleic acids presents a risk of misuse. In this report, the authors provide recommendations for implementing comprehensive screening policies and securing commercial nucleic acid synthesis services against misuse.
