A Decade of SBOL Visual: Growing Adoption of a Diagram Standard for Engineering Biology

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.