Genetically Modified Organisms ( Gmos )

Genetic modified organisms, or GMOs, are living organisms that, through the genetic engineering process, have been altered to withstand certain chemicals and increase the nutritional value of the product. In fact, the majority of the foods found at the grocery store are genetically altered. Genetic modification is becoming increasingly popular on farms throughout the United States and moving into other parts of the world due to their increasing yield capabilities and pest and weed control. However, this has been, and continues to be, an extremely controversial topic of discussion in the world of agriculture and biotechnology, as well as health food critics, because of potential environmental and health risks.

Genetically modified crops are an incredibly important issue that everyone should be aware of since it is something we are exposed to at a daily basis. Genetically modified crops also known as GM crops or Biotech crops has been one of the most heated debates of issues within our society. The debate about the safety, concerns and disadvantages of GM crops have raged since the mid 1990 's but this is due to the lack of knowledge of the general public. Many people are unaware of what the GM crops actually are and what they offer. Genetically modified crops are plants that are used in the agriculture and have been modified to initiate a new trait to plants that does not happen naturally in the species. These plants are modified using genetic engineering techniques to enhance desired traits. GM crops are made when genes of commercial interest are transferred from one organism to another.() There are many methods used for the production of GM crops but the two primary used for plant insertion are gene guns and agrobacterium tumefaciens. There are also three types of modifications which are transgenic, cisgenic, and subgenic plants. However, there are a number of issues that surround this controversial topic such as environmental, health, and economic concerns. Even though there are some worrying facts about GM crops people don 't realize the advantages or the ways it has helped humans as well as animals. There are many reasons why GM crops are proven

Over the past decades, agriculture technology and productivity has been changing drastically to fit the needs of the world population. The largest agricultural production country, the United States, has been experiencing these changes more rapidly just to meet these agricultural demands. This in turn has lead to serious controversies over the ethics and morals of some agricultural practices, namely Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). With the US population increasing every year, US farmers had to develop some way to meet the high demands of the people, therefore, GMOs were developed to help increase crop yields while also helping farmers financially by using less pesticides and herbicides.

By the year 2012, over 70 percent of the processed foods in the U.S can be linked to genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. Despite this strong dependency on the manipulation of genetic material, there are many questions concerning long-lasting impacts such food could bring. The government of the United States of America should enforce stricter restrictions on the consumption, production, and availability of food products containing genetically modified organisms. Genetically engineered foods have detrimental impacts on the environment, are linked to large, monopolizing industries, and do not reduce world hunger.

Last winter, strolling the streets of Paris with my father, we stopped at a grocery store to purchase some groceries. As I was looking through the produce section, I noticed that the berries I eyed were much smaller than the berries I typically buy from grocery stores in America. I pondered the reason for this and I was determined to find out. Later that evening I browsed the web and learned that berries are smaller in Europe due to many factors such as containing preservatives and not being GMOs. I thought to myself, what is a GMO? GMO stands for genetically modified organism, meaning that the organism’s genes have been played around with through genetic engineering. Today, GMOs play a role in the world environmentally, economically, and

This lab was performed to explore and discover GMOs in food that were given to test. Our group used oats, a GMO positive food, and a test food. Our goal was to find out whether the test food was GMO positive or negative and to record data accordingly. I hypothesized that the test food will be GMO positive. To see if my hypothesis had been correct we performed the process of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), to find the presence of GMO positive or negative DNA in the foods. We first extracted the DNA from the foods, and then added primers to the DNA as well. I then inserted the DNA onto a gel using a micropipette. Using gel electrophoresis and a UV transilluminator we were able to view the staggering results.

The idea of genetically modifying food is great, but it is too good to be true. Underneath all the benefits lies many more disadvantages.

We all as Americans eat food every day to maintain our homeostasis balance of nutrition. We eat our veggies, meats, dairy, and so forth. We buy our produces from local markets and grocery stores all around the country, but do we really know what kind of products we are purchasing? Where our foods come from and how they are grown? There are many products around us and amongst these foods are some that have been genetically modified. Genetically modified foods (GMOS) are also known as bio-engineered. They are usually available to the public for consumption. Whether that organism is an animal, a plant, or a microorganism. Most of the time, GMOs are recognizable as being plants, which is the one of the biggest concern,

In recent years, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have made a significant change in our diet with the introduction of genetically altered foods, which have essentially affected human health as well as local communities. Anthropologists tells us that homo sapiens were hunter gatherers. Their “evolved behaviors helped them respond to the challenges of survival in unstable environments shifting them to live an agricultural lifestyle” (Homo Sapiens. Smithsonian ). Over the millennia, agriculture has made a huge gain in efforts to serve human preferences by domesticating crops and animals to improve production and make them resistant to diseases and pests. Genetic modification evolutionized domesticated crop plants in each crop generation. During this time, agriculture began to arise through applications of modern scientific breeding. Crop plants were the center of seminal research in genetics and scientist main focus. (Cereal Foods World 2007).

Back then, farmers relied solely on the plot of soil they owned to produce fruits and vegetables. Farmers often had to deal with the threat of damaged crops from weather changes and insect pests. However, imagine being able to not increase productivity and protecting crops being ruined or eaten. Now, with advancements in technology and genetics, scientists can genetically modify organisms by altering its DNA in a way that does not occur naturally by mating or natural recombination to introduce desired physiological traits (EFFL 235). In 2000, 68% of all genetically modified, GM, crops were grown by U.S. farmers, with soybeans and corn making up 82% of all GM crops harvested in 2000 (Whitman 5). According to the European Food & Feed Law Review, scientists may transfer simple genes from the DNA from one organism into another, and also between non- related species, such as animals, bacteria, and virus to enhance desired traits (4). The use of genetic engineering was first introduced to aid farmers in an alternative other than using pesticides. Soon after, enhanced traits that improve nutrition were inputted into plants to increase nutritional value. Although the genetic engineering of GM food may create superweeds, GM food should be encouraged since it decreases the need for pesticides, increases food supply, and improves the nutrition of food.

One of the biggest controversies in today’s grocery stores is whether products contain genetically modified foods. Many people are suspicious of these foods due to their genetic alteration and mysterious nature. Essentially, biotechnology is a relatively new discipline that modifies plants on the molecular level. DNA provides the building blocks for the body’s genes and each gene regulates a specific trait. Scientists are able to clip a gene from the DNA of one plant and splice it into the DNA of another plant. Without altering plants, humans would have not been able to survive and today’s huge world population would not be supported. Scientists believe that some alterations are as safe as the traditional method of slow plant breeding to improve crops. However, some people wonder about the unintended consequences that GM foods might have on the human body. For example, critics ask whether a rise in allergies is linked to these crops.

It is not uncommon for people to resist change, especially those that present new technologies. This is because people feel that the old ways worked fine and the new technologies will cause more harm than good. One of these technologies is Genetically Modified Organisms or GMOs. Genetically Modified Organisms are not new since humans have been selectively breeding plants and animals for hundreds of years creating the best product possible, but the GMOs today are newer technologies. The current GMOs involve the transfer of DNA from one plant to another to achieve desired traits. According to Nelson Gerald, a genetically modified crop is made by inserting one or more genes of interest from another species into a plant cell, along with promoter and marker genetic material. The promoter material influences the location in the plant where the desired trait is produced, and the levels they are produced. The genetic marker helps identify successful transformations. After the insertion of the genetic material, the transformed cell is induced to grow into a new plant that expresses the desired traits, (Fig. 1 helps demonstrate this process).The new plant is then crossbred with other plants of the same species to achieve desired traits in existing varieties (Gerald, p.5, 2001). Although it is not perfected, the modification of plants through genetic engineering can provide benefits to society in areas such as

Genetically modified foods have been an issue in the United States ever since the invention of genetically modified objects. Over time, agriculturalists have domesticated plants and animals that suit the needs of the population in terms of improved production, resistance to diseases and pests, and human preferences (Chassy 169). In doing this, desirable traits were selected in each crop generation that led to an improved crop from an anthropocentric viewpoint. This has escalated even further after the industrial revolution where we began to have machinery and improved techniques from which to farm. At the same time as this was occurring and we were modernizing our agricultural system, scientific methods began to develop that drew heavily from genetics.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are benefitting your body, bank account, and well being because they’re affordable, environmentally friendly, and healthier compared to conventional crops; they could be an answer to the world’s food problems. GMOs are created through genetic engineering (GE) by scientists to improve their ability to grow in foreign environments, resist pests, endure extreme weather, or yield more product; in simpler terms, it is a new and improved version of a food, plant, or animal (Monsanto 1). Genetically modified crops have advantages over conventional farming which could benefit third world countries and, in the long run, hopefully end world hunger. They can be produced in different climates and can be enhanced

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.