Steven A. Benner

Steven Albert Benner
Born (1954-10-23) October 23, 1954 (age 70)[1]
NationalityAmerican
Alma materYale University
Harvard University
Scientific career
FieldsChemistry, synthetic biology
InstitutionsHarvard University
ETH Zurich
University of Florida, Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution
Doctoral advisorRobert Burns Woodward, Frank Westheimer
Websitewww.ffame.org

Steven Albert Benner (born October 23, 1954) is an American chemist. He has been a professor at Harvard University, ETH Zurich, and most recently at the University of Florida, where he was the V.T. & Louise Jackson Distinguished Professor of Chemistry. In 2005, he founded The Westheimer Institute of Science and Technology (TWIST) and the Foundation For Applied Molecular Evolution. Benner has also founded the companies EraGen Biosciences and Firebird BioMolecular Sciences LLC.

Benner and his colleagues were the first to synthesize a gene, beginning the field of synthetic biology. He was instrumental in establishing the field of paleogenetics. He is interested in the origin of life and the chemical conditions and processes needed to produce RNA. Benner has worked with NASA to develop detectors for alien genetic materials, using the definition of life developed by the NASA Exobiology Discipline Working Group in 1992, “a self-sustaining chemical system capable of Darwinian evolution”.[2][3][4][5]

  1. ^ "Benner, Steven A. (Steven Albert), 1954-". Library of Congress Authority Records. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  2. ^ Mullen, Leslie (August 1, 2013). "Defining Life: Q&A with Scientist Gerald Joyce". Astrobiology Magazine. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  3. ^ Benner, Steven A. (December 2010). "Defining Life". Astrobiology. 10 (10): 1021–1030. Bibcode:2010AsBio..10.1021B. doi:10.1089/ast.2010.0524. PMC 3005285. PMID 21162682.
  4. ^ Klotz, Irene (February 27, 2009). "Synthetic life form grows in Florida lab". Science. Archived from the original on January 13, 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  5. ^ Lloyd, Robin (February 14, 2009). "New Artificial DNA Points to Alien Life". LiveScience. Retrieved 5 July 2016.