Genetic Engineering in Agriculture Essay

Scientists continue to find new ways to insert genes for specific traits into plant and animal DNA. A field of promise—and a subject of debate—genetic engineering is changing the food we eat and the world we live in.

The concept of intentionally altering an organism’s DNA in order to produce genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has been critically analyzed by both science and the mainstream media in the last decade. However, the genetic modification of organisms is not a recent innovation as humans have been modifying organisms for over 30 000 years (Rangel, 2015). Back then, breeding through artificial selection was the most prominent method of genetic engineering. Organisms with the most desirable traits would be bred together in order to create a new generation of superior organisms. Throughout the centuries, the developments in science and technology have resulted in new methods of genetic engineering. Now, genomes can be spliced in order to insert or remove genes. It has essentially come down to a copy and paste process with genes from animals being inserted into plants as the common practice.

In an ever changing world, there are only a few things that are certain that all people need. It is said that a human can last three minutes without air, three hours without shelter, three days without water, and three weeks without food. The typical American farmer in 2017 feeds about 155 people compared to the 25.8 people in 1960. The thought of genetically modified organisms is nothing more than just a regulatory muddle. Agriculture is such a widely conversed topic however, through extensive research, international experiments, and general education, it is clear that genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) are safe on all aspects as well as necessary to continue to feed the people.

Genetic modification of organisms is something the human race has been doing for thousands of years, starting with the first domestication of animals around 10,000 years ago. (Root, 2) Many of these genetic alterations were at a basic level, an example of this being the cross breeding of dogs to achieve desirable traits. Additionally, importation of new plants or animals into areas they didn’t historically come form, forced adaptations from these organism to survive. More recently, scientists have begun to understand genetic engineering at the DNA level, and expand its use into the altering of plants genetic code. (Goldbas) Scientists are now gaining insight into

Farming is one of the oldest professions known to mankind. Since time immemorial, man has harvested crops and built civilizations around farms. Agriculture has been a building block for many of the world’s greatest civilizations and continues to be the backbone of many countries across the globe today. In earlier days, farms and agricultural practices were limited to a small size due to the lack of greater need however as the world’s population has continued to grow exponentially, farms have dramatically increased in size and agricultural production has increased owing to the use of newer scientific techniques and more refined catalysts for growth such as re-engineered fertilizers and richer soil. However, despite all this crops are still vulnerable to diseases that pose a great threat and jeopardize the output of a farm; along with this there exists a natural limit that can be achieved in terms of productivity due to constraints such as depletion of minerals in the soil and natural make-up of the plants. To overcome these obstacles, a new practice by the name of genetic modification is rapidly becoming popular and taking the world by storm. Genetically modified organisms are those whose natural genetic makeup has been

For the last several decades, the world has been plagued by widespread starvation and poverty. Economies are failing in numerous countries, and developing nations struggle to feed their inhabitants. As a result of the world’s mounting overpopulation, food has become scarce and resources are rapidly dwindling. However, modern science has provided a solution: agricultural biotechnology. Genetically engineered crops represent the bright future of agriculture. Crops like cotton, corn, and soybeans can have genes inserted or deleted into their cell membranes; this modification facilitates pest and virus resistance, drought tolerance, and even provides nutritional enhancement. Genetically altered crops produce much higher

Our world is full of complications, situations that need people’s attention. Scientists are attempting to find answers for most of the world’s difficulties. Nevertheless, a solution for one problem creates some other obstacle. It becomes impossible to create a solution that does not have side effects. One of the difficult situations in this world is hunger and poverty. Many people lack enough food to live a healthy life, especially in developing and underdeveloped countries. In order to provide sufficient food and maintain food security, scientists discovered genetically altered foods. Genetically engineered foods are grown from plants or animals whose genes are modified by inserting new genes that can increase the plant’s and animal’s resistance to diseases and worms. By doing so, researchers improve crop yield and animal products. In addition to increasing the amount of food produced, scientists enhance the nutritive content of crops by using biotechnology, which results in reducing malnutrition. Furthermore, some investigators claim the environmental importance of

The second method of inserting specific genes into plants is to use a gene gun. A gene gun was designed to pierce plant cell walls, and to allow specific genetic material to enter the plant (Gan and Carol, 1989). Gold or tungsten particles are coated with plasmid DNA; these particles are then transferred to large macro projectiles (Gan and Carol 1989). Using air pressure, the projectiles are fired at a petri dish containing plant tissue (Gan and Carol 1989). Through the use of a perforated plate only the smaller golden or tungsten particles enter the plant cells (Gan and Carol, 1989). This method of gene insertion is mainly used on monocotyledon plant species like wheat and maize (Gan and Carol 1989). However, the use

Genetically modified organisms, or GMO’s, include plants and animals that have had their DNA sequence altered to impart new qualities such as drought resistance, enhanced growth rate, and pest resistance (Feeding the World). In recent years, the genetic modification of raw food products has risen as a new alternative to traditional breeding since it provides faster results, is more efficient, and is more precise in targeting specific traits. “There are some problems that conventional methods can not solve” says Francisco Aragao, who is a researcher at EMBRAPA. Genetic modification is becoming increasingly more important due to the rise in population and the recent increase in urbanization around the world, from rural communities to city

Many Americans consume thousands of pounds of genetically modified foods every day. Throughout the 21st century, genetic engineering tremendously impacted new research in pharmaceutical and forensic science. During that time, it also revolutionized the food in America and many other countries around the world. Using Recombinant DNA biotechnology on crops and farm animals helps improve nutrition and quantity of foods. However, crops that are altered with hybrid genes can also contain chemicals harmful to humans. By using developed biotechnology, scientists are able to inject viruses and bacteria into the embryos of plants to produce genetically modified crops (). The same is applied for transgenic farm animals to increase the size of the

Many people today are often amazed by the amount of nutrition and health information required for humans. The constant stream of genetic modification of food can be confusing. Genetically modified (GM) foods are plants and animals that have had their genetic makeup artificially altered by scientists to make them grow faster, taste better, last longer and to provide more nutrients. Scientists make these alternations by transferring genes from one organism into another in order to change the condition or character of the receiving organism. This process is known as biotechnology or genetic engineering (GE), and it has revolutionized the way that agriculture is practiced in many parts of the world. Researchers are now able to use GE

Genetically modified technology refers to the process of isolating an exogenous gene from animals, plants, or microbes and transferring it to another organism. Many people have concerns with the process of genetically modified foods, and its growing popularity within farmers. The persistence with which GMF organizations want farmers to turn their farm into a genetically modified farm is sometimes overboard. So much so, farmers grow tired of these organizations bugging them, and these farmers eventually agree to modify their crops. Neighboring farmers have concerns that the GMF herbicides would spread to their own farms, causing their farms to have a modified effect on crops. The first generation of modified crops main objective was to make the crops insect resistant and herbicide tolerant. Some of the benefits to planting these new GM crops was the decreased need to spray their farms with the insecticides and herbicides. These concerns with GMF also included labels, safety/health, and the perception of GMF.

Genetic engineering of food produce is considered a miracle technology. Many speculate that this discovery has the possibility to end world hunger. By mass producing and marketing produce, the associated costs will decrease. With lower production costs for crops, healthy options will not only be more accessible, but more affordable for customers as well. Some even contend that the overall health of the general population will improve. How does this affect the healthcare industry? If we can genetically modify food, why not humans? By accepting and utilizing engineered produce as a viable food source, many express it would eliminate the need for trade, because each country would be capable of producing its own food. Which corporation(s) would corner the market? If genetically engineered goods permeate the market, a trading would become obsolete. An intense plunge in the value of produce would agitate the stock market. The eradication of trading produce would cripple most, if not all, economies (Gandel, 2010). Though genetic engineering of food has drawbacks, the benefits arguably may manage to outweigh them. The total dissolution of world hunger is an impressive feat. But, do the perceived benefits of genetic engineering make the hassle of starting a business worthwhile? Have the potential threats to democracy along with the socioeconomic implications associated with the utilization of new and emerging human engineering technologies thoroughly been considered?

The coding region of the gene is usually fused to a promoter, most commonly used is the 35S promoter from cauliflower mosaic virus (CMV), in order to promote higher expression levels. (Snow et. al, 1997) The popular method for genetic engineering of crop plants is natural gene transfer via an Agrobacterium tumefaciens vector, a bacterium normally found in soils. The transfer-DNA (T-DNA) vector is made by inserting the desired gene fragment in between specific 25bp repeat domains in the bacterium. The vector is then inserted into the Agrobacterium and "the virulence gene products of Agrobacterium actively recognize, excise, transport, and integrate the T-DNA region into the host plant genomes." (Conner et. al, 1999) The amount of DNA transferred is only about 10kb and the nature of the gene is usually well understood. The expression of the gene introduced can also be controlled by adding additional sequences that might allow the gene to be constitutively expressed, expressed only in certain cell types, or expressed as a result of different environmental changes. This method of gene transfer, however, will only work for the natural host range of the bacterium and therefore other methods are used for additional crop plants. Such methods are uptake of naked DNA by electroporation or particle gun bombardment. The use of genetic markers, as mentioned previously, allows for the preferential growth of cultures that contain the new genetic

For gene engineering, transfer DNA (t-DNA) is eliminated from the plasmid of the bacteria and then substituted with the desired foreign gene. It is then transferred to a random site in the genome of the plant.