Scientists in the United States say they've developed the world's first synthetic organism. Supporters say this marks the beginning of a new industrial revolution. Critics say scientists are playing God. Pallab Ghosh explains.

It's a development that some believe will transform our world on a par with the splitting of the atom or the creation of the silicon chip. Scientists working for a private corporation have created the world's first synthetic life form - a single-celled organism named Synthia. Its DNA was built block-by-block in a machine. What's more, when Synthia reproduces, its offspring also have the new artificial DNA. Scientists say that this is a beginning of a new industrial revolution. All manner of synthetic bugs could be made, they say, to produce new medicines, clean up pollution and create a new generation of biologically based electronic components.