Genetically modified plants

- Proteins used in medicine can be produced by GM plants to prevent contamination by animal

proteins (e.g. vaccines, albumin, and the proteins found in breast milk which are used to treat
infant diarrhoea).
- Some plants are modified to have increased nutritional value like golden rice with its extra
vitamin A.
- Most modifications are there to increase crop yields.
Herbicide-resistance:
- Canola has been genetically modified to be resistant to herbicides. This allows it to grown in
fields sprayed with herbicide. This means less competition for crop space, light, water and
ions.
- Canola is a hybrid of natural rape seed oil. It was made because oil seed rape contains
substance (erucic acid and glucosinolates) that are unsuitable in human and animal foods.
- GM oil seed rape is resistant to glyphosate and/or glufosinate.
Glyphosate inhibits an enzyme involved in the synthesis of three animo acids:
phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. It is absorbed by a plants leaves and is
transported to the growing tips. Since the animo acids are need for producing essential
proteins, the plant dies.
The resistant plants have variants of the enzymes which are not affected by glyphosate.
The gene coding for this variant comes from Agrobacterium.

- Tobacco has been made resistant to two herbicides: sulfonylurea and dinitroanlanine.
- Negative effects of growing herbicide resistant crops include:
The GM plant will become an agricultural weed (not proven).
Pollen will transfer the gene to wild relatives, producing hybrid offspring that are invasive
weeds.
- Oil seed rape interbreeds easily with wild radio and wild turnip. Thus, safe planting
distances should be increased for farms to maintain their GM free certification because
pollen can be blowen a long distance by the wind.
- It may occur, but is unlikely.
Herbicide resistant weeds will evolve because so much herbicide is used.
- Gene technology is not directly the cause of this. Herbicide may be used even when
there is no GM crop.
Insect-resistance:
- BT maize
Bt toxin, made by Bacillus thuringiensis, is lethal to insects that eat it but harmless to
other animals.
The gene for Bt toxin has been inserted into maize to protect against corn borers.
However, many corn borer populations have developed resistance to Bt toxin.
- Refuges where growers plant up to 50% non-GM raise are encouraged to prevent the
spread of resistance.
 - Resistance the Bt toxin is caused by a recessive allele in corn borers. The insects in
the refuges will be homozygous dominant or heterozygous, introducing the non-
resistant allele into the population.
- Tabacco

- Negative effects of insect-resistant crops include:

The evolution of resistance by the insect pests
- But, only insects that eat the crop are affected and using less pesticides can reduce
the risk of affecting non-target species of insects
Decrease in biodiversity
Expensive
Damaging effects on other insect species
- For example, Monarch butterflies and aquatic insect larvae, like caddis larvae, and Bt
maize.
Transferring the added gene to another plant species:
- Bt maize may pollinate its wild parent species, teosinte, transferring the modified
genes to it. But, since maze pollen does not remain viable for long after being exposed
to air, this is less of a problem.
- Bt maize has caused a decrease in the populations of microorganisms in the soil.
The Example of Golden Rice
- Golden rice has a gene coding for carotene (vitamin A) in the endosperm added to it from
daffodils and soil bacteria called Pantoea ananatis.
- Many people suffer from vitamin A deficiency, especially in less developed countries.
Vitamin A is found in fish, milk, eggs, butter,
cheese, and liver.
Pro-vitamin A carotenoids are also found
in the aleurone layer of normal rice, but
not the endosperm.
- Since the aleurone layer goes rancid, it
is removed to allow rice to last longer.
Vitamin A deficiency can cause blindness.
- Steps of making golden rice:
Genes coding for carotene were identified
and extracted from maize and Pantoea
ananatis.
These genes, together with promoters,
were inserted into plasmids.
The plasmids were taken up by
Agrobacterium tumefaciens.
The bacteria were mixed with rice
embryos in Petri dishes. The bacteria
 naturally infect plants (rice) and introduced a genetically modified plasmid into the rice.
The rice embryos were grown into adult plants.
- Arguments against golden rice:
A better way to solve malnutrition is to help people to get out of poverty.
It may have unknown side-effects.
- Arguments for golden rice:
Poverty is a problem that cannot be solved quickly, but golden rice can be supplied quickly
and affordably.
Helps avoid blindness and death.
Genetically Modified Animals
- Atlantic Salmon were genetically modified with a gene for growth-hormone regulation from
Pacific Chinook salmon and a promoter from ocean trout, which were inserted into a fertilised
egg.
This genetic modification allows it to produce growth hormone all year round.
The fish reaches market size in half the time its wild counterpart does.
Only sterile females should be bred and they should be farmed in land-based tanks to prevent
them from competing with wild salmon in nature.

Concerns About Genetic Modification in Crops

1. The modified crop plants may become agricultural weeds or invade natural habitat.
2. The introduced genes may be transferred by pollen to wild relatives whose hybrid offspring may
become invasive.
3. The introduced genes may be transferred by potent to unmodified plants growing on farms with
organic certification.
4. The modified plants may be toxic or cause allergies for humans or other animals.
5. The herbicide that is uses on the crop will leave toxic residues on the crop.
6. GM seeds are expensive.
7. Growers need to buy seed each season unlike for traditional varieties.
8. Traditional varieties of crops may be lost along with potentially useful background genes.