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YOUR NOTES
19.3 Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture ⬇

CONTENTS
19.3.1 Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture

19.3.2 Using GMOs in Agriculture

19.3.1 GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS IN

AGRICULTURE
Genetic Engineering: Use in Agriculture

Genetic engineering is a technique used to deliberately modify a specific characteristic (or

characteristics) of an organism

The technique involves removing a gene (or genes) with the desired characteristic from
one organism and transferring the gene (using a vector) into another organism where
the desired gene is then expressed

The genetically engineered organism will then contain recombinant DNA and will be a
genetically modified organism (GMO)

Although plants and animals have been genetically engineered to produce proteins used in
medicine, the main purpose for genetically engineering them is to meet the global demand
for food

Crop plants have been genetically modified to be:

Resistant to herbicides – increases productivity / yield

Resistant to pests – increases productivity / yield

Enriched in vitamins – increases the nutritional value

Farmed animals have been genetically modified to grow faster. It is rarer for animals to be
modified for food production due to ethical concerns associated with this practice

Scientists have genetically modified many organisms including bacteria (eg. to produce
insulin), sheep (eg. to produce a human blood protein known as AAT), maize (eg. to be
resistant to insect attacks), rice (eg. to produce β-carotene to provide vitamin A)

The benefits of using genetic engineering rather than the more traditional selective breeding
techniques to solve the global demand for food are:
Organisms with the desired characteristics are produced more quickly

All organisms will contain the desired characteristic (there is no chance that
recessive allele may arise in the population)

The desired characteristic may come from a different species / kingdom

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19.3 Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture ⬇

GM salmon
In 2015 AquaAdventure Salmon was approved by the US Food and Drug Authority (FDA) for
human consumption

This salmon has been genetically modified (GM) to grow more rapidly than non-GM salmon
as a result of growth hormone being produced in the salmon throughout the year, instead of
just in spring and summer. The producer therefore has a product to sell in half the time,
which increases their yield

Scientists combined a growth hormone gene from a chinook salmon with the promoter
gene from an ocean pout, a cold-water fish. The ocean pout fish can grow in near-freezing
waters, thus the promoter gene ensured the growth hormone was continually being
expressed

To prevent the GM salmon from reproducing in the wild, all the salmon are female and sterile

Herbicide resistance in soybean

Growing herbicide-resistant soybeans allows farmers to spray a herbicide on the crop
after germination to kill weeds that would otherwise compete with the growing soybeans for
light, water and minerals, therefore decreasing the yield

The resistant gene comes from a strain of the bacterium Agrobacterium

This gene allows an enzyme in the soybean to continue to synthesise three amino acids
(phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan) needed to produce proteins required in the
growing tips of plants

The herbicide glyphosate inhibits the enzyme in plants without the resistant gene; without
the proteins being synthesised, the plants die

Insect resistance in cotton

Cotton has been genetically modified with a gene for the Bt toxin, which is taken from the
bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis

Cotton plants modified with the Bt toxin gene produce their own insecticide

When an insect ingests parts of the cotton plant, the alkaline conditions in their guts activate
the toxin (the toxin is harmless to vertebrates as their stomach is highly acidic), killing the
insect

Different strains of thuringiensis produce different toxins which are toxic to different insect
species

Insect populations have developed resistance to the genes for Bt toxin, reducing
effectiveness as a means of protecting crops

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19.3 Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture ⬇

19.3.2 USING GMOS IN AGRICULTURE

GMOs in Food: Social & Ethical Implications

The genetic modification of microorganisms for the production of medicines, antibiotics and
enzymes raises little debate compared to the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs)
for food production

The use of GMOs in food production has been proposed as a solution to feeding the
increasing world population, the decreasing arable land and decreasing the impact on the
environment, however concerns such as the development of resistance in insects and weeds
and costs of seeds have meant that countries are not allowing GMOs to be grown

The solution could be integrated pest-management systems that could help avoid the
development of resistance and increased population of secondary pests

Ethical implications
The ethical implications of using GMOs in food production are:
The lack of long-term research on the effects on human health – should GM food be
consumed if it is unknown whether it will cause allergies or be toxic over time
(although there has been no evidence to suggest this would occur to date)

Making choices for others:

That without appropriate labelling the consumer cannot make an informed
decision about the consumption of GM foods

As the pollen from the GM crop may contaminate nearby non-GM crops that
have been certified as organic

By reducing the biodiversity for future generations

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19.3 Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture ⬇

Social implications
The social implications of growing GMOs for food evolve around whether the crops are safe
for human consumption and for the surrounding environment

The possible implications are:

The GM crops may become weeds or invade the natural habitats bordering the
farmland

The development of resistance for the introduced genes in the wild relative
populations

Potential ecological effects (e.g. harm to non-targeted species like the Monarch
butterflies)

Cost to farmers (new seed needs to purchase each year)

Could cause allergic reactions

The ability to provide enriched foods to those suffering from deficiencies (eg. Golden
Rice) and therefore decrease in diseases

Reduced impact on the environment due to there being less need to spray pesticides
(eg. less beneficial insects being harmed)

Reduction in biodiversity which could affect food webs

The herbicides that are used on the GM crops could leave toxic residues

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