Julian's Science Experiments
  • Famous Experiments and Inventions
  • The Scientific Method
  • Home Biotechnology Experiments Biotechnology Science Fair Projects Resources Cloning Jokes Warning!
       

    Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
    Experiments, Studies and Background Information
    For Science Labs, Lesson Plans, Class Activities & Science Fair Projects
    For Middle School, High School and College Students & Teachers







    GMOs Studies and Experiments

    • Genetically Modified Organisms: PCR analysis of DNA (Grades 9-12) [View Experiment]
    • Test grocery store food products for the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMO). [View Experiment]
    • The Singapore Biosafety Guidelines For Research on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) [View Experiment]
    • National Guidelines for the Release Of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) Into the Environment [View Experiment]
    • Restrictions on Genetically Modified Organisms: United States [View Experiment]
    • Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs): A Danger to Sustainable Agriculture [View Experiment]
    • Genetically Modified Organisms (Gmo): Harmful Effects of the Agent [View Experiment]
    • Unplanned Exposure to Genetically Modified Organisms [View Experiment]
    Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)

    Definition

    A genetically modified organism (GMO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques.

    Topics of Interest

    A genetically modified organism (GMO) or genetically engineered organism (GEO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. These techniques, generally known as recombinant DNA technology, use DNA molecules from different sources, which are combined into one molecule to create a new set of genes. This DNA is then transferred into an organism, giving it modified or novel genes. Transgenic organisms, a subset of GMOs, are organisms which have inserted DNA that originated in a different species. Some GMOs contain no DNA from other species and are therefore not transgenic but cisgenic.

    Genetic modification involves the insertion or deletion of genes. When genes are inserted, they usually come from a different species, which is a form of horizontal gene transfer. In nature this can occur when exogenous DNA penetrates the cell membrane for any reason. To do this artificially may require attaching the genes to a virus or just physically inserting the extra DNA into the nucleus of the intended host with a very small syringe, or with very small particles fired from a gene gun. However, other methods exploit natural forms of gene transfer, such as the ability of Agrobacterium to transfer genetic material to plants, or the ability of lentiviruses to transfer genes to animal cells.

    Uses: GMOs have widespread applications. They are used in biological and medical research, production of pharmaceutical drugs, experimental medicine (e.g. gene therapy), and agriculture (e.g. golden rice). The term "genetically modified organism" does not always imply, but can include, targeted insertions of genes from one species into another. For example, a gene from a jellyfish, encoding a fluorescent protein called GFP, can be physically linked and thus co-expressed with mammalian genes to identify the location of the protein encoded by the GFP-tagged gene in the mammalian cell. Such methods are useful tools for biologists in many areas of research, including those who study the mechanisms of human and other diseases or fundamental biological processes in eukaryotic or prokaryotic cells.

    Bacteria were the first organisms to be modified in the laboratory, due to their simple genetics. These organisms are now used for several purposes, and are particularly important in producing large amounts of pure human proteins for use in medicine.

    Genetically modified bacteria are used to produce the protein insulin to treat diabetes. Similar bacteria have been used to produce clotting factors to treat haemophilia, and human growth hormone to treat various forms of dwarfism.

    Transgenic animals: Some chimeras, like the blotched mouse shown, are created through genetic modification techniques like gene targeting.Transgenic animals are used as experimental models to perform phenotypic and for testing in biomedical research. Other applications include the production of human hormones such as insulin.

    Fruit flies: In biological research, transgenic fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) are model organisms used to study the effects of genetic changes on development. Fruit flies are often preferred over other animals due to their short life cycle, low maintenance requirements, and relatively simple genome compared to many vertebrates.

    Genetically modified mammals are an important category of genetically modified organisms. Transgenic mice are often used to study cellular and tissue-specific responses to disease. In 2009, scientists in Japan announced that they had successfully transferred a gene into a primate species (marmosets) and produced a stable line of breeding transgenic primates for the first time.

    Genetically modified fish has promoters driving an over-production of "all fish" growth hormone. This resulted in dramatic growth enhancement in several species, including salmonids, carps and tilapias.

    Gene therapy, uses genetically modified viruses to deliver genes that can cure disease into human cells. Although gene therapy is still relatively new, it has had some successes. It has been used to treat genetic disorders such as severe combined immunodeficiency, and treatments are being developed for a range of other currently incurable diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia, and muscular dystrophy. Current gene therapy technology only targets the non-reproductive cells meaning that any changes introduced by the treatment can not be transmitted to the next generation. Gene therapy targeting the reproductive cells - so called "Germ line Gene Therapy" - is very controversial and is unlikely to be developed in the near future.

    Transgenic plants have been engineered to possess several desirable traits, including resistance to pests, herbicides or harsh environmental conditions, improved product shelf life, and increased nutritional value. Since the first commercial cultivation of genetically modified plants in 1996, they have been modified to be tolerant to the herbicides glufosinate and glyphosate, to be resistant to virus damage as in Ringspot virus resistant GM papaya, grown in Hawaii, and to produce the Bt toxin, a potent insecticide. Most of transgenic varieties grown today are known as first generation transgenics, because the transgenic trait provides benefits to farmers. Plants of the second generation should directly benefit the consumer with nutritional enhancement, taste, texture etc. Transgenic plants of the second generation are being developed by both public research institutions and private companies. However currently there is no such transgenic variety on the market. Genetically modified sweet potatoes have been enhanced with protein and other nutrients, while golden rice, developed by the International Rice Research Institute, has been discussed as a possible cure for Vitamin A deficiency. In January 2008, scientists altered a carrot so that it would produce calcium and become a possible cure for osteoporosis; however, people would need to eat 1.5 kilograms of carrots per day to reach the required amount of calcium.

    Cisgenic plants: While conventional transgenic plants are developed by introduction of a gene originating from distant, sexually incompatible species into the host genome, cisgenic plants contain genes which have been isolated either directly from the host species or from sexually compatible species. The new genes are however introduced using recombinant DNA methods and gene transfer. Principally the same result could be obtained by classical breeding. However the disadvantage of classical breeding is that with one desired trait also a number of undesired traits are transferred and the number of backcrosses necesary to remove these undesired traits approaches infinity. Some scientist hope that the approval process of cisgenic plants might be simpler that that of proper transgenics, but it remains to be seen.

    The genetically modified foods controversy is a dispute over the relative advantages and disadvantages of genetically modified (GM) food crops and other uses of genetically-modified organisms in food production. The dispute involves biotechnology companies, governmental regulators, non-governmental organizations and scientists. The dispute is most intense in Japan and Europe, where public concern about GM food is higher than in other parts of the world such as the United States, where GM crops are more widely grown and the introduction of these products has been less controversial.

    Safety is a major issue in this controversy. Adverse health effects need to be screened for, because health effects are dependent upon the modifications made. The need for screening and testing increases as more changes are made, and "second-generation" GMs will require more testing. To date no adverse health effects caused by products approved for sale have been documented, although two products failed initial safety testing and were discontinued, due to allergic reactions. Most feeding trials have observed no toxic effects and saw that GM foods were equivalent in nutrition to unmodified foods, although a few reports attribute physiological changes to GM food. However, some scientists and advocacy groups such as Greenpeace and World Wildlife Fund consider that the available data do not prove that GM food does not pose risks to health, and call for additional and more rigorous testing before marketing genetically engineered food.

    Another area of controversy is what effect pest and herbicide-resistant crops have on ecosystems, by for example reducing the numbers of pest insects in farmland and impacting biodiversity, or by decreasing the use of insecticides. Attempts have been made to measure these effects by farm-scale trials of GM crops, although the interpretation of the results of these trials has been controversial. The risk and effects of horizontal gene transfer have also been cited as concerns, with the possibility that genes might spread from modified crops to wild relatives.

    A chimera is an animal that has two or more different populations of genetically distinct cells that originated in different zygotes; if the different cells emerged from the same zygote, it is called a mosaicism. Typically seen in non-human zoology (but also discovered to a rare extent in humans).

    Dolly (5 July 1996 – 14 February 2003) was a female domestic sheep remarkable in being the first mammal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell, using the process of nuclear transfer. She was cloned by Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell and colleagues at the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh in Scotland. She was born on 5 July 1996 and she lived until the age of six. She has been called "the world's most famous sheep" by sources including BBC News and Scientific American.

    Genetic pollution is undesirable and uncontrolled gene flow into wild populations. The term is of late usually associated with the gene flow from a genetically engineered (GE) or genetically modifed organism GMO) to a non GE/GM organism.

    Source: Wikipedia (All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License and Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.)

    Useful Links
    Science Fair Projects Resources
    Biotechnology & Genetic Engineering Science Fair Projects Books

    The Orchid Grower - A Juvenile Science Adventure Novel
    The Orchid Grower
    A Juvenile Science Adventure Novel
    About Genetic Engineering





    My Dog Kelly

    Follow Us On:
         

    Privacy Policy - Site Map - About Us - Letters to the Editor

    Comments and inquiries could be addressed to:
    webmaster@julianTrubin.com


    Last updated: June 2013
    Copyright © 2003-2013 Julian Rubin