Transcript CAPT Embedded Task: Biotechnology: Should There Be a

Genetic Engineering
Recombinant DNA Technology:
Genetic Engineering involves____________________________________
the cutting of fragments of DNA from one
__________________________________________________
organism
and inserting them into a host organism’s genome.
Transgenic Organisms are_____________________________________
the organisms that are the recipients of
___________
foreign
DNA. Ex: Glo-Fish. Glo-Fish contain a gene, originally from a specie
of sea coral, that is responsible for the luminescent “Glow”.
Genetic Engineering
Transgenic Animals Transgenic animals have been used to study genes
and to improve the food supply. Strains of mice have been produced with
human genes that make their immune systems act similarly to those of humans.
This allows scientists to study the effects of diseases on the human immune
system. Transgenic livestock have been produced with extra copies of growth
hormone genes. Such animals grow faster and produce meat that is less fatty
than that from ordinary animals.
Efforts are now underway to
produce transgenic chickens that
will be resistant to the bacterial
infections that sometimes cause
food poisoning.
A Jersey calf whose cells were modified
with genes for producing lysostaphin, a
protein that kills Staphylococcus aureus
bacteria, a leading cause of mastitis
disease in dairy cows. She is the first
transgenic cow clone engineered to
resist mastitis, which costs the U.S.
dairy industry $1.7 billion a year.
Genetic Engineering
Transgenic Plants Transgenic plants are now an important part of our food
supply. In the year 2000, 52 percent of the soybeans and 25 percent of the corn
grown in the United States were transgenic, or genetically modified (GM).
Many of these plants contain genes that produce a natural insecticide, so the
crops do not have to be sprayed with synthetic pesticides. Others have genes
that enable them to resist weed-killing chemicals, allowing farmers to grow
more food by controlling weeds.
Transgenic plants may soon
produce human antibodies that
can be used to fight disease. One
of the most important new
developments in GM foods is a
rice plant that adds vitamin A to
rice, the major food for billions of
the world’s people.
Corn engineered to produce the Bt toxin
reduces the impact of European corn borers
Genetic Engineering
More and more farmers are using Genetically Modified (GM) crops to help
increase profits and reduce the use of pesticides.
Should the foods you buy have mandatory labels?
CAPT Embedded Task:
Biotechnology:
Should There Be a Mandatory
Label on GM Foods?
Exemplary = 8
Persuasive
Content
There is a prominent
stand on labeling and
it is fully supported
with appropriate
personal or factual
information.
Proficiency = 6
There is a clear
stand on labeling
and provides some
support.
Developing = 4
Insufficient = 2
There is a stand on a
position, but is not
very clear. There
was some support,
but it was poorly
done.
There is an attempt
to find a stand, but it
did not achieve the
task. There is some
information, but it
does not help
support any stand.
Choose a GM Food to Analyze
Once you have chosen a GM
Food, visit www.gmo-compass.org
and research the necessary
information for your brochure. The
website will have a grocery shopping
drop down bar and a selection of GM
Foods to choose from. Use this site
to help research the following
information:
What makes the product
genetically modified?
What is the benefit of genetically
modifying this product?
What are the current research
methods on this product?
Does this product require a label?
If so, why?
How does the genetically modified
product impact the environment?
Use this information to help you
address the issues with the
applications of GM products. Use a
full panel on your brochure to fulfill
this component of your assignment.
Genetically Modified Tomatoes
GM
Food to Analyze
Choose a GM Food to Analyze
Use a full panel in theExample:
brochure!Tomatoes
Transgenic tomatoes (FlavrSavr)
have a "deactivated" gene. This
meant that the tomato plant was no
longer able to produce an enzyme
involved in fruit softening.
The premise was that tomatoes
could be left to ripen on the vine and
still have a long shelf life, thus
allowing them to develop their full
flavor.
Scientists are still working with
genetic tools to give tomatoes new
traits like resistance to insect pests
and fungal and viral pathogens
Etc. etc.