Copyright
©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Biol Chem. Aug 26, 2014; 5(3): 275-278
Published online Aug 26, 2014. doi: 10.4331/wjbc.v5.i3.275
Published online Aug 26, 2014. doi: 10.4331/wjbc.v5.i3.275
Life is more than a computer running DNA software
František Baluška, IZMB, University of Bonn, 53113 Bonn, Germany
Guenther Witzany, Telos-Philosophische Praxis, 5111 Buermoos, Austria
Author contributions: Both of the authors contributed to this paper.
Correspondence to: Guenther Witzany, PhD, Telos-Philosophische Praxis, Vogelsangstr. 18c, 5111 Buermoos, Austria. witzany@sbg.at
Telephone: +43-6274-6805 Fax: +43-6274-6805
Received: March 23, 2014
Revised: July 4, 2014
Accepted: July 18, 2014
Published online: August 26, 2014
Processing time: 172 Days and 8.9 Hours
Revised: July 4, 2014
Accepted: July 18, 2014
Published online: August 26, 2014
Processing time: 172 Days and 8.9 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Craig Venter is elaborating a box attached to a computer that receives DNA sequences over the internet to synthesize DNA. As a leading expert in the field of synthetic biology, he is convinced that “life is a DNA software system”, and all living things are reducible to DNA sequences. In contrast to this, the authors propose that DNA sequences of genomes do not represent 1:1 depictions of unequivocal coding structures such as genes. In light of the variety of epigenetic markings, DNA can store a multitude of further meanings hidden under the superficial grammar of nucleic acid sequences.