Signal DSIT guidance on screening synthetic nucleic acids

Summary

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has issued screening guidance on synthetic nucleic acids to address biosecurity concerns over the deliberate or accidental misuse of synthetic DNA. The guidance aims to prevent misuse while still enabling and encouraging legitimate research and industrial use. The report presents it as a key UK mitigation against risks from the spread of engineering biology. Under the UK Biological Security Strategy, the government has committed to fostering responsible innovation in the field. As background, the report points out that malign actors could engineer pathogens as weapons against people or to threaten livestock and crops.