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Biotechnology Advancements And Uses Of Biotechnology

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BIOTECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENTS AND USES
There are many things that biotechnology is used for, especially in the field of agriculture. It can be used to enhance a crop’s protection, increase a crop’s productivity, improve a crop’s nutritional value, add flavor to various foods, benefit the environment as well as developing countries, improve food processing, and create overall fresher produce. All of these things are just the tip of the iceberg as far as biotechnology’s uses in modern day society. Enhanced Protection and Increased Productivity. As I stated earlier, many crops use biotechnology to grow with a pesticide within the plant itself. This pesticide is really a protein that was placed inside of the plant that also kills pests. This protein is from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which is the main ingredient in many natural insecticides. This can save farmers money in the long run because they no longer need to use other fertilizers. Since 1997, the use of pesticides on global biotech crop acreage has been reduced by 790 million pounds, an 8.8 percent reduction.
An example of plant protection by the use of biotechnology are the development of two varieties of papaya developed by the University of Hawaii and Cornell University. The researchers created these varieties to be resistant to PRSV(papaya ringspot virus)by transferring one of the virus’s genes to the papaya to create the resistance. This is fundamentally the same method scientists use to create

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