Journal article
A Decade of SBOL Visual: Growing Adoption of a Diagram Standard for Engineering Biology
ACS synthetic biology, Vol.14(10), pp.3822-3830
10/17/2025
DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.5c00417
PMID: 41016059
Abstract
Standards play a crucial role in ensuring consistency, interoperability, and efficiency of communication across various disciplines. In the field of synthetic biology, the Synthetic Biology Open Language (SBOL) Visual standard was introduced in 2013 to establish a structured framework for visually representing genetic designs. Over the past decade, SBOL Visual has evolved from a simple set of 21 glyphs into a comprehensive diagrammatic language for biological designs. This perspective reflects on the first ten years of SBOL Visual, tracing its evolution from inception to version 3.0. We examine the standard's adoption over time, highlighting its growing use in scientific publications, the development of supporting visualization tools, and ongoing efforts to enhance clarity and accessibility in communicating genetic design information. While trends in adoption show steady increases, achieving full compliance and use of best practices will require additional efforts. Looking ahead, the continued refinement of SBOL Visual and broader community engagement will be essential to ensuring its long-term value as the field of synthetic biology develops.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- A Decade of SBOL Visual: Growing Adoption of a Diagram Standard for Engineering Biology
- Creators
- Lukas Buecherl - Utah State UniversityFelipe X Buson - University of BristolGeorgie Hau Sørensen - University of BristolCarolus Vitalis - University of Colorado SystemErik Kubaczka - Technical University of DarmstadtGonzalo Vidal - University of Colorado SystemBryan BartleyYan-Kay Ho - University of CambridgeGöksel Mısırlı - Keele UniversityThomas E Gorochowski - University of BristolJacob BealChris J Myers - University of Colorado SystemPrashant Vaidyanathan - Engineering Software Research and Development
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- ACS synthetic biology, Vol.14(10), pp.3822-3830
- DOI
- 10.1021/acssynbio.5c00417
- PMID
- 41016059
- NLM abbreviation
- ACS Synth Biol
- ISSN
- 2161-5063
- eISSN
- 2161-5063
- Publisher
- AMER CHEMICAL SOC
- Grant note
- Army Research Office: 101082333 ERC-PoC grant PLATE: URF/R/221008 Royal Society University Research Fellowship: EP/N510129/1 Alan Turing Institute under EPSRC: BB/Y007638/1 UKRI-funded Engineering Biology Mission Award CYBER under BBSRC: BB/W014173/1 UKRI BBSRC: W911NF-22-2-0210 Army Research Office: HR0011-24-C-0423 DARPA: BB/Z517367/1 BBSRC
We would like to thank all contributors to the SBOL Visual standard over the past decade and members of the wider community. E.K. was supported by ERC-PoC grant PLATE (101082333). T.E.G. was supported by a Royal Society University Research Fellowship grant URF/R/221008, a Turing Fellowship from The Alan Turing Institute under EPSRC grant EP/N510129/1, and the UKRI-funded Engineering Biology Mission Award CYBER under BBSRC grant BB/Y007638/1. Y.K.H. and F.X.B. were supported by the UKRI BBSRC grant BB/W014173/1. C.V., G.V., and C.J.M. were supported by the Army Research Office under Cooperative Agreement Number W911NF-22-2-0210 and by DARPA grant number HR0011-24-C-0423. G.M. was supported by the BBSRC grant BB/Z517367/1. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, and the decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agencies. This document does not contain technology or technical data controlled under either U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulation or U.S. Export Administration Regulations.
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 09/28/2025
- Date published
- 10/17/2025
- Academic Unit
- Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984966795102771
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