r. shanthini 07 jan 2012 modern agricultural biotechnology includes manipulation of the genetic...

R. Shanthini 07 Jan 2012

Modern agricultural biotechnology includes manipulation of the genetic make-up of organisms for use in the production or processing of agricultural products.

Agricultural Biotechnology:

Why Agricultural Biotechnology?- to raise and stabilize yields

- to improve resistance to pests and diseases

- to improve resistance to drought, cold, etc.

- to enhance the nutritional content of foods


Agricultural biotechnology uses genetic engineering which is a process of inserting a foreign gene into a plant/animal cell and cloning that cell into a genetically engineered crop/animal.



http://www.greenfacts.org/en/gmo/2-genetically-modified-crops/2-genetic-engineering.htm



http://www.greenfacts.org/en/gmo/2-genetically-modified-crops/2-genetic-engineering.htm


When the bacterium infects the plant, it penetrates the plant cells and transfers its modified DNA to the plant.

The genetically modified plant is then grown from the transformed cell.

Once the DNA reaches the cell nucleus, it inserts itself at random into one of the host chromosomes.

The DNA may also be physically shot into the plant nucleus carried on microscopic particles of tungsten or gold using gene guns.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Bt toxin bred GM crop

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a common soil bacterium.

It produces chemicals that are toxic to certain insects (larvae of moths and butterflies, beetles and flies).

The gene coding for Bt toxin has been inserted into cotton and corn.

Bt-cotton and Bt-corn produce Bt toxin in all tissues of the plant.

No application of any pesticide is required to protect the Bt-crops from a large number of pests.

Bt-cotton is ineffective against many cotton pests (plant bugs, stink bugs, and aphids) requiring the use insecticides against these.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton



Heavy rain;Wet conditions favour bollworm)

http://www.agbioforum.org/v5n1/v5n1a01-morse.htm



Monsanto has reported to the regulator, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), the following:

“Pink bollworm has developed resistance to GM cotton variety (Bollgard I) in Gujarat’”

This was detected by the company during field monitoring in the 2009 cotton season.



Monsanto said: "Resistance is natural and expected.“

Monsanto blamed pink bollworm resistance to Cry1Ac protein in Gujarat to

- "early use of unapproved Bt cotton seeds" by farmers and

- "limited refuge planting".

(Farmers are supposed to maintain a distance between Bt cotton farms and other farms as a "refuge".)

Monsanto also advised farmers the following:

- to take up "need-based application of insecticide sprays"

- "properly manage crop residue and unopened bolls after harvest".



root worm (called root borer) commonly chewed the corn root tendrils right where they enter the soil surface.



Expansion of corn and soybean acreage resulted from

- a reduction in cotton acreage,

- a shift from uncultivated hay to cropland, and

- the expansion of double cropping (consecutively producing two crops on the same land

within the same year).

Continuous exposure to Bt on a large portion of all prime US farm land has created Bt resistance in corn borers.

Iowa State University confirmed field-evolved resistance by root worm to the Cry3Bb1 protein in an Iowa study.

University of Illinois observed severe root damage in Bt corn in northwestern Illinois



Tips on how to respond to the resistance suggested a long-term integrated approach to corn rootworm management:

- adult suppression programs

- use of soil insecticides at planting

- rotation of Bt hybrids that express different Cry proteins

- and rotation to non-host crops.



Plants producing Bt toxin are releases toxin in pollen.



Common GM food:

VegetablesTomatoesPotatoesRiceCheeseMeat


• Rice- not high in essential nutrients

Modification:

+ daffodil genes and a bacterium = beta-carotene content drastically increased

+ genes from a french bean = double the iron content.

• Tomatoes- Introduce genes to increase shelf life.



Crop productivity could be increased by introducing disease resistance and increased drought tolerance to the crops.

Genes from naturally drought-resistant plants can be used to increase drought tolerance in many crop varieties growing in dry climates so that crops shall use water as efficiently as possible.

Source: http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/gmo/risks/benefits.asp

Agricultural Biotechnology: Increased crop productivity


An effective transgenic crop-protection technology can control pests better and more cheaply than existing technologies.

For example, with Bt toxin bred into a corn crop, the entire crop is resistant to certain pests.

In these cases, yields increase as the new technology provides more effective control.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Enhanced crop production


The first GM food product to receive regulatory approval, in 1990, was chymosin, an enzyme produced by genetically engineered bacteria.

It replaces calf rennet in cheese-making and is now used in 60% of all cheese manufactured.

Its benefits include increased purity, a reliable supply, a 50% cost reduction, and high cheese-yield efficiency.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Improvement in food processing


Transgenic crops in development include

- soybeans with higher protein content,

- potatoes with more nutritionally available starch and an improved amino acid content,

- beans with more essential amino acids, and

- rice with the ability produce beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A, to help prevent blindness in people who have nutritionally inadequate diets.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Improved nutritional value


Flavor can be altered by enhancing the activity of plant enzymes.

Types of peppers and melons with improved flavor are currently in field trials.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Improved flavour


Genetic modification can result in improved keeping properties to make transport of fresh produce easier, giving consumers access to nutritionally valuable whole foods and preventing decay, damage, and loss of nutrients.

Transgenic tomatoes with delayed softening can be vine-ripened and still be shipped without bruising.

The shelf-life of some processed foods such as peanuts has also been improved.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Fresher produce


When genetic engineering results in reduced pesticide dependence,

- we have less pesticide residues on foods,

- we reduce pesticide leaching into groundwater, and

- we minimize farm worker exposure to hazardous products.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Environmental benefits


Antibiotic resistance genes are used to identify and trace a trait of interest that has been introduced into plant cells.

Use of these markers has raised concerns that new antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria will emerge.

The rise of diseases that are resistant to treatment with common antibiotics is a serious medical concern of genetic engineering.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Antibiotic resistance


New transgenic crops might cross-pollinate with related weeds, possibly resulting in “superweeds” that become more difficult to control.

Genetic engineering could improve a plant’s ability to “escape” into the wild and produce ecological imbalances or disasters.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Potential gene escape and

development of “superweeds”


Modified crops released into the environment could have unforeseen and undesirable effects.

Bt corn produces a very specific pesticide intended to kill only pests that feed on the corn.

In 1999, however, researchers at Cornell University found that pollen from Bt corn could kill caterpillars of the harmless Monarch butterfly.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Impacts on non-target species

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.butterflyutopia.com/BIG/019a-monarch_butterfly.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.butterflyutopia.com/monarch_danaus_plexippus.html&h=420&w=550&sz=58&tbnid=Q0IILBL-NjdupM:&tbnh=102&tbnw=133&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmonarch%2Bbutterfly&usg=__trOGFy9HFyEC1UDY7OiI5GHxB4I=&ei=wwVVSsnJBY_q6AOcvsHmDw&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=2&ct=image


Insect pests could develop resistance to crop-protection features of transgenic crops.

There is fear that large-scale adoption of Bt crops will result in rapid build-up of resistance in pest populations.


Agricultural Biotechnology: Insecticide resistance


While transgenic crops help ensure a reliable supply of basic foodstuffs, loss of agricultural biodiversity and wild biodiversity could not be overruled consequence.

Agricultural Biotechnology: Loss of Biodiversity

R. Shanthini 07 Jan 2012 Source: http://www.foodhaccp.com/memberonly/newsletter281.html

Rat babies of same age

The process of inserting a foreign gene into a plant cell and cloning that cell into a genetically engineered crop could cause the natural plant genes to be deleted or permanently turned on or off, and hundreds can change their function.

This massive collateral damage is why GM soy has less protein, an unexpected new allergen, and up to seven times higher levels of a known soy allergen.

It also may explain why British soy allergies skyrocketed by 50% soon after GM soy was introduced.

Agricultural Biotechnology: Allergens and Toxins


Born to and raised by a mother on a conventional soy diet

Born to and raised by a mother on GM soy diet

Source:http://www.biotech-weblog.com/50226711/genetically_modified_soy_in_russia.php


Research results of a team led by Irina Ermakova, Doctor of Biology, at the Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS).




GM corn and cotton have genes inserted that produce a pesticide called Bt.

If the gene transferred from corn snacks, for example, it could turn our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories.

Farmers on three continents link Bt corn varieties with sterility in pigs and cows, or deaths among cows, horses, water buffaloes and chickens.

Hundreds of farm workers who pick Bt cotton get allergic reactions.

Source: http://www.foodhaccp.com/memberonly/newsletter281.html




Although biotechnology may be a powerful and intellectually stimulating tool, GM crops are developed largely for profit motives and therefore could carry significant yet hard to quantify risks.

Maria Alice GarciaInstituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de CampinasMiguel A. AltieriUniversity of California, Berkeley





The Rio declaration:

In order to protect the environment, the precautionaryapproach should be widely applied by States according totheir capabilities. Where there are threats of serious orirreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall notbe used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measuresto prevent environmental degradation.

(RioDEC, 1992)



When a course of action might have a potentially serious impact, one approach is to adopt the precautionary principle.

Rather than assuming something is safe until proven otherwise, the precautionary principle argues the opposite – that something should be considered potentially harmful unless shown to be safe.

While the precautionary principle aims to protect us against possible dangers, an excessively 'safety-first' approach may have its own drawbacks.

http://www.wellcome.ac.uk




The Bergen declaration:

In order to achieve sustainable development, policies must be based on the Precautionary Principle (environmental measures must anticipate, prevent, and attack the causes of environmental degradation).

Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of scientific uncertainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation.

(Cameron and Abouchar, 1991)


Sustainable Agriculture

is an integrated system of plant and animal production practices…that will

satisfy human food and fiber needs enhance environmental quality make the most efficient use of

nonrenewable resources sustain economic viability, and enhance quality of life.

1990 Farm Bill


All sustainable agricultural production

systems and practices are

economically viable,

environmentally sound,

and socially acceptable.

General definition



economically viable

provides a secure living for farm families provides a secure living to other workers in

the food system provides access to good food for all



environmentally sound

preserves the quality of soil, water, and air cooperates with and is modeled on

natural systems



socially acceptable

good for families supports communities fair to all involved



NAVDANYA, Indiaowning life, owning seeds and owning water

Source: M. Ganguly, Seeds of Self-Reliance. Time, Sept 02, 2002: p71.

- encourages farmers to produce hardy native varieties of crops that can be grown organically with natural fertilizer and no artificial chemicals

- has collected 2,000 native seed varieties which they distribute among farmers

- helps local farmers form their own self-supporting organization and seed bank

- has set up a marketing network through which farmers sell their organic harvest

- has shown that organic farmers with the knowledge of local conditions and traditional methods can achieve high yields at little cost to the environment, and thereby has set an eco-friendly standard



The good earth will fail us of we fail her – but she will

sustain us if we treat her right


r. shanthini 07 jan 2012 modern agricultural biotechnology includes manipulation of the genetic...

Documents

bt toxin

bt cotton farms

gm crop monsanto

cotton pests plant bugs

orgwikicotton slide

cotton season

plant nucleus

modified plant