biopsoni

Biopsoni is a term used in speculative biology to denote a class of living systems that function as autonomous, distributed biosensors capable of real-time environmental monitoring and adaptive response. In this concept, biological components—either engineered cells or semi-synthetic organisms—assemble into networks that sense, compute, and respond to stimuli without centrally controlled instructions.

The word combines "bio" with a suffix suggesting view or operation, and it is not widely standardized in peer-reviewed literature. It appears in futurist discussions, ethics debates, and some speculative science fiction, where it is used to illustrate potential future forms of self-regulating living systems.

Mechanisms rely on genetic circuits, quorum-sensing signals, and intercellular communication to coordinate actions such as reporting, containment, or remediation. Designs emphasize modularity, tunable sensitivity, and error correction, along with built-in safety measures to limit growth or spread (biocontainment, kill switches).

Potential applications include environmental monitoring of toxins or climate parameters, in-situ remediation of pollutants, dynamic control of industrial bioprocesses, and diagnostic sensing within medical contexts. It also raises ethical, ecological, and regulatory considerations, including biosafety, dual-use risk, consent, and governance.

See also synthetic biology, biosensors, gene circuits, biocontainment.