BIODIVERSITY AND THE

HEALTHY SOCIETY
WEEK 14
BIODIVERSITY
Nature and Concept of
Biodiversity?
• Biological diversity (biodiversity) is defined as
the vast variety of life forms in the entire
Earth.
• It encompasses all kinds of life forms, from
the single-celled organisms to the largest
multi-celled organisms.
• Its definition is in the structural and
functional perspective and not as individual
species.
Nature and Concept of
Biodiversity?
• Where several different species and genera
cohabitate, there is a rich biodiversity.
• One of the basic laws of the living is that of self-
preservation. An organism will sacrifice all it has
to ensure its survival.
• With a limited amount of resources, many living
organisms of a diverse region survives through
sharing of the available energy supply through
various ecological relationships.
Origin of the concept
• While ancient philosophers of nature tried to
explain all things as coming from the elements
(water, air, fire, or earth), science sought for the
common characteristics, a unifying element, in all
of nature’s many phenomena.
• The growing awareness of how all living things are
related to each other (an idea called biodiversity),
started when naturalists began to classify
organisms in the natural world using “taxonomy” (a
system devised by Swedish Carl Linneus).
Importance of Biodiversity
• It is the source of essential goods and
ecological services that constitute the source
of life for all and it has direct consumptive
value in food, agriculture, medicine, and
industry.
• Healthy ecosystems can better withstand
and recover from a variety of disasters to
name a few.
Health, Biology, and Biodiversity
• Basic needs of living organisms such as air, water,
food, and habitat are provided by its
environment.
• Lack of basic necessities is a significant cause of
human mortality.
• Environmental hazards increase the risk of cancer,
heart disease, asthma, and many other illnesses.
• The interrelation between human health and
biological diversity is considerable and complex.
Environment-Related Illnesses
• Some human illnesses that are found to be
related with its environment include Parkinson’s
disease, heart disease, cancer, chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease, asthma, diabetes, obesity,
occupational injuries, dysentery, arthritis, malaria,
and depression.
• Many of the issues at the intersection of health
and the environment have to do with managing
benefits and risks:
Environment-Related Illnesses
- Pesticides play an important role in increasing
crop yields, but they can also pose hazards to
human health and the environment.
- Energy production and use helps sustain human
life, but it can also pose hazards to human
health and the environment.
- Increasing taxes on fossil fuels would encourage
greater fuel efficiency and lower carbon dioxide
emissions, but it would also increase the price of
transportation.
Environment-Related Illnesses
• Managing benefits and risks also raises social
justice concerns:
- People with lower socio-economic status
have greater exposure to certain harmful
environmental conditions.
Current State of Biodiversity
• Decrease in biodiversity is eminent
worldwide.
• Vertebrates fell to 60% from the 1970s due
to human causes.
• It is projected by 2020, wildlife decline will
be 67% of the present number.
• The Worldwide Fund for Nature and
Zoological Society of London reported an
annual decrease in wildlife by 2%.
Current State of Biodiversity
• A major cause is human population which
has doubled in number since 1960 to 7.4
billion.
• Humans have industrialized the natural
habitat of wildlife as well as marine life.
• Leaving these creatures with no place to live
would eventually cause their deaths.
Current State of Biodiversity
• The disappearance of species in a certain
environment causes an imbalance in the
ecosystem, producing more chaotic changes
that harm the entire ecosystem.
Critically Endangered Species in
the Philippines
Critically Endangered Species in
the Philippines
Critically Endangered Species in
the Philippines
Habitat loss and destruction
Alterations in ecosystem
composition
Overpopulation
Over-exploitation
Pollution
Climate Change
Invasive Species
BIOTECHNOLOGY
Biotechnology
• The exploitation of biological processes for
industrial and other purposes, especially the genetic
manipulation of microorganisms for the production
of antibiotics, hormones, etc. (Merriam)
• At its simplest, biotechnology is technology based
on biology - biotechnology harnesses cellular and
biomolecular processes to develop technologies and
products that help improve our lives and the health
of our planet. (bio.org)
Biotechnology
• It is the broad area of biology involving living
systems and organisms to develop or make
products, or "any technological application that
uses biological systems, living organisms, or
derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or
processes for specific use" (UN Convention on
Biological Diversity, Art. 2)
Biotechnology
• Modern biotechnology paves the way for new
developments on food and agriculture. Particularly,
it aims to develop:
• new precision tools and diagnostics;
• speed up breeding gains and efficiency;
• develop pest-and-disease-resistant crops;
• Combat salinity, drought, and problems of agriculture;
• Enhance nutritional quality of food;
• Increase crop varieties and choice;
• Reduce inputs and production costs;
• Increase profits (Bragdon et. al., 2005)
GMO and Genetic Engineering
• Based on evolutionary theory, the concept of
survival of the fittest implies that living organisms
have a natural spectrum of characteristics such as
size, mass, or length.
• The characteristics of an organism and its
successors can be modified today by modern
technology, giving rise to what are called
“genetically modified organisms”.
GMO
• A GMO (genetically modified organism) is the result
of a laboratory process where genes from the DNA
of one species are extracted and artificially forced
into the genes of an unrelated plant or animal.
• The foreign genes may come from bacteria, viruses,
insects, animals or even humans. Because this
involves the transfer of genes, GMOs are also
known as “transgenic” organisms.
• It started as a science fiction novel by Jack
Williamson, but the continuous research made it a
reality.
GMOs in Food and Agricultural
Industries
• Pest Resistance – resist certain pests (i.e. Bt
Corn vs. worms)
• Virus resistance – resist certain viruses (i.e.
papaya vs. PRSV)
• Herbicide tolerance
• Fortification – fortified with minerals (i.e.
golden rice fortified with vitamin A)
• Cosmetic preservation – resist natural
discoloration
• Increase growth rate – higher yield in growth
than normal species
Benefits of GMOs
• Higher efficiency in farming
• Increase in harvest
• Control in fertility
• Increase in food processing
• Improvement of desirable characteristics
• Nutritional and pharmaceutical
enhancement
• Reduce the use of fertilizers and pesticides
Potential risks of GMOs
• Since genetic engineering is still a young
branch of science, there are inadequate
studies on the effects of GMOs.
• Genetic engineering promotes mutation in
organisms which the long term effect is still
unknown.
Potential risks of GMOs
• Human consumption of GMOs might have
the following effects:
- More allergic reactions
- Gene mutation
- Antibiotic resistance
- Nutritional value
Potential Environmental Risks
Caused by GMOs
• Risk in gene flow – modified gene may be
transferred to its wild relative through soil
and its effect remains unknown.
• Emergence of new forms of resistance and
secondary pests and weed problems –
resistance to certain pesticides may trigger
new form of pests while herbicide resistant
crops may trigger new form of weed
resistance.
Potential Environmental Risks
Caused by GMOs
• Recombination of virus and bacteria to
produce new pathogens – modified gene can
be transferred and integrated in the viral
and bacterial genes which leads to their
mutation.
• Disruption of natural communities of plants
and animals
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
• It is an international agreement which aims
to ensure the safe handling, transport, and
the use of living modified organisms (LMOs)
resulting from modern biotechnology that
may have adverse effects on biological
diversity, taking also into account risks to
human health.
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
• It takes precautionary approach by making
sure that countries are provided with the
data necessary to make informed decisions
before agreeing to the import of such
organisms into their territory.
• Since the Philippines is one of the
biodiversity “hotspots” in the world, it is
helpful to know how biotechnology will
progress in the country.