It has been suggested that Genetic engineering be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

A genetically modified organism is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using techniques generally known as "recombinant DNA technology". Recombinant DNA technology is the ability to combine DNA molecules from different sources into the one molecule in a test tube. The first GMO was created in 1973 by Stanley Cohen and Herbet Boyer [[1]]. Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Genetically modified organism. ... Genetics (from the Greek genno γεννώ= give birth) is the science of genes, heredity, and the variation of organisms. ...

The term generally does NOT cover organsims who's genetic makeup have been altered by conventional cross breeding or by "mutagenesis" breeding as these methods pre-date the discovery of the recombinant DNA techniques. Examples of GMOs are diverse, and include transgenic experimental animals such as mice, transgenic plants, or various microscopic organisms altered for the purposes of genetic research or for the production of pharmaceuticals. Binomial name Mus musculus Linnaeus, 1758 Mus musculus is the common house mouse. ...

"Genetically modified organism" does not necessarily imply (but does include) transgenic substitution of genes from another species, although research is actively being conducted in this field. For example, genes for fluorescent proteins can be co-expressed with complex proteins in cultured cells to facilitate study by biologists, and modified organisms are of great use in researching the mechanisms of cancer and other diseases. Fluorescence induced by exposure to ultraviolet light in vials containing various sized cadmium selenide (CdSe) quantum dots. ... Main articles: Life All organisms (viruses not included) consist of cells, which in turn, are based on a common carbon-based biochemistry. ... When normal cells are damaged or old they undergo apoptosis; cancer cells, however, avoid apoptosis. ... A disease is any abnormal condition of the body or mind that causes discomfort, dysfunction, or distress to the person affected or those in contact with the person. ...

History

In mid-1974, very soon after the first GMO was created, scientists called for and observed a voluntary moratorium on certain recombinant DNA experiments. One goal of the moratorium was to provide time for a conference that would evaluate the state of the new technology and the risks, if any, associated with it. That conference was held in February of 1975 at the Asilomar Conference Center on California's Monterey peninsula in the USA. The conference concluded that recombinant DNA research should proceed but under strict guidelines. Such guidelines were subsequently promulgated by the USA's National Institutes of Health and by comparable bodies in other countries. These guidelines form the basis upon which GMOs are regulated to this day. [[2]]

Terminology

Gene splicing - 1. [n] the technology of splicing together DNA fragments from more than one organism and thus preparing a "recombinant" DNA molecule in a test tube. This is achieved by cutting up DNA molecules with restriction enzymes and splicing these fragments together using DNA ligase. A restriction enzyme (or restriction endonuclease) is an enzyme that cuts double-stranded DNA. The enzyme makes two incisions, one through each of the phosphate backbones of the double helix without damaging the bases. ... In molecular biology, DNA ligase is a particular type of ligase (EC 6. ...

Transgenic - an organism that contains DNA sequences from a foreign organism integrated into its own genome ; literaly across gene. An example is any animal besides jelly fish that expresses the green flouresence protein (glow-in-the-dark-when-exposed-to-a-blacklight gene) such as mice or fish because that gene originated from jelly fish.

knock outs - knock out organism are organism in which a specific gene has been functionaly destroyed or "knocked out." They are used extensively in disease research with model organisms. For example, when investigating the cause of cystic fibrosis, researchers identified the CFTR gene as a very likely candidate for the disease, found the mouse equivalent , bred a mouse with this gene "knocked out", and noted that the knockout mouse also had cystic fibrosis.

vector - means by which new DNA is introduced into the receiving host. Vectors can be anything from small circular pieces of DNA (plasmids), to various viruses that can carry and transmit genetic information. Figure 1 : Schematic drawing of a bacterium with plasmids enclosed. ...

Methods of genetic modification

Genetic modification of bacteria

Three processes are known by which the genetic composition of bacteria can be altered: transformation is a process by which some bacteria are naturally capable of taking up DNA to acquire new genetic traits. This phenomenon was discovered by Frederick Griffith in 1928, although the fact that it was specifically DNA molecules that carried the genetic information was not proven until 1944. Bacteria that are competent to undergo transformation are frequently used in molecular biology. Transformation does not normally integrate new DNA into the bacterial chromosome. Instead, it remains on a plasmid. Phyla/Divisions Actinobacteria Aquificae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chlamydiae/Verrucomicrobia Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Nitrospirae Omnibacteria Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Bacteria (singular, bacterium) are a major group of living organisms. ... Transformation is the genetic alteration of a cell resulting from the introduction, uptake and expression of foreign genetic material (DNA or RNA). ... Space-filling model of a section of DNA molecule Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions specifying the biological development of all cellular forms of life (and many viruses). ... Frederick Griffith (1877 or 1881 - 1941) was a British medical officer. ... 1928 was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. ... Figure 1: Chromosome. ... Figure 1 : Schematic drawing of a bacterium with plasmids enclosed. ...

• In conjugation, DNA is transferred from one bacterium to another via a temporary connecting tube of protien called a pilus (a process analogous to but biologically distinct from mating). Conjugation is not widely used for the artificial genetic modification of bacteria.
• Transduction refers to the introduction of new DNA into a bacterial cell by a bacteriophage (a virus that infects bacteria).

Transduction is the process in which DNA is moved from one bacterium to another. ... A phage (also called bacteriophage) (in Greek phageton = food/consumption) is a small virus that infects only bacteria. ... A virus is a nonliving small particle that infects cells in biological organisms. ...

Genetic modification of plants

See main article Transgenic plants.

The principal technique for the genetic modification of plants is based on a natural ability of the bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens. This bacterium infects plants and causes a tumor-like growth termed a crown gall. A. tumefaciens contains a plasmid (a circular piece of DNA) that transfers from the bacteria into the infected plant and integrates into the plant's genome. The transferred genes cause the plant to form the gall, which houses the bacteria and produces nutrients that support the bacteria's growth. A number of scientists contributed to this discovery throughout the late 1960s and the 1970s, with key discoveries by Jeff Schell, Marc Van Montagu, Georges Morel, Mary-Dell Chilton and Jacques Tempé. By 1983 biotechnology had reached the point where it was possible to insert additional genes of interest into A. tumefaciens and thus transfer those genes into plants. This process is commonly used to create transgenic crop plants for agricultural purposes. Another widely used process to create transgenic crops is biolistic method (gene gun). Biolistic method was also used for the creation of two most common transgenic crops - RoundUp ready soybean and Bt-corn. Transgenic plants are plants that have been genetically engineered using recombinant DNA techniques to make plants with new characteristics. ... Divisions Land plants (embryophytes) Non-vascular plants (bryophytes) Hepaticophyta - liverworts Anthocerotophyta - hornworts Bryophyta - mosses Vascular plants (tracheophytes) Lycopodiophyta - clubmosses Equisetophyta - horsetails Pteridophyta - true ferns Psilotophyta - whisk ferns Ophioglossophyta - adderstongues Seed plants (spermatophytes) †Pteridospermatophyta - seed ferns Pinophyta - conifers Cycadophyta - cycads Ginkgophyta - ginkgo Gnetophyta - gnetae Magnoliophyta - flowering plants Adiantum pedatum (a fern... Binomial name Agrobacterium tumefaciens Agrobacterium tumefaciens is a species of bacteria that causes tumors (commonly known as galls or crown galls) in dicots (Smith et al. ... Figure 1 : Schematic drawing of a bacterium with plasmids enclosed. ... Space-filling model of a section of DNA molecule Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions specifying the biological development of all cellular forms of life (and many viruses). ... In biology the genome of an organism is the whole hereditary information of an organism that is encoded in the DNA (or, for some viruses, RNA). ... The 1960s, or The Sexy Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ... This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1970s. ... Mary-Dell Chilton is a key founder of modern plant biotechnology. ... 1983 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Biotechnology is technology based on biology, especially when used in agriculture, food science, and medicine. ... Transgenic plants are plants that have been genetically engineered using recombinant DNA techniques to make plants with new characteristics. ... The gene gun is a device for injecting cells with genetic information, originally designed for plant transformation. ... Transgenic maize (corn) has been deliberately genetically modified to have agronomically desirable traits. ...

Genetic modification of animals

Like bacteria and plants, animals can be genetically modified by viral infection. However, the genetic modification occurs only in those cells that become infected, and in most cases these cells are eventually eliminated by the immune system. In some cases it is possible to use the gene-transferring ability of viruses for gene therapy, i.e. to correct diseases caused by defective genes by supplying a normal copy of the genes. Permanent genetic modification of whole animals can be accomplished in mice. The process begins by first genetically modifying a mouse embryonic stem cell. This is normally done by physically introducing into the cell a plasmid that can integrate into the genome by a process known as transfection [[3]]. Durring transfection the DNA itergrates into the animal genome using non-homologous recombination. This altered cell is implanted into a blastocyst (an early embryo), which is then implanted into the uterus of a female mouse. A pup born from this blastocyst will be a chimera containing some cells derived from the unmodified cells of the blastocyst and some derived from the modified stem cell. By selecting mice whose germ cells (sperm or egg producing cells) developed from the modified cell and interbreeding them, pups that contain the genetic modification in all of their cells will be born. Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... The immune system is the system of specialised cells and organs that protect an organism from outside biological influences. ... Gene therapy using an Adenovirus vector. ... Feral mouse A mouse is a mammal that belongs to one of numerous species of small rodents in the genus Mus and various related genera of the family Muridæ (Old World Mice). ... Mouse embryonic stem cells. ... Embryogenesis is the process of cell division and cellular differentiation which leads to the development of an embryo. ... Female symbol Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces egg cells. ... In zoology, a chimera is an animal which has two or more different populations of cells, which are genetically distinct and which originated in different zygotes (fertilized eggs). ...

There has also been the genetically manipulated bull Herman with 55 offspring. A human gene was built into his genetic code while in an early embryonic stage in 1990. As a result, milk from his female descendants contained the human protein lactoferrine, that can be used as medicine, but it was present at such low levels that it was not profitable to extract them.

Insects can be genetically modified by injecting them with artificial transposons and a source of transposase. The transposon, which can include new genes, is then integrated into the genome. Such insertions are unstable and can 'jump-out' in the presence of transposase. Classes & Orders Subclass: Apterygota Orders Archaeognatha (Bristletails) Thysanura (Silverfish) Monura - extinct Subclass: Pterygota Orders Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Diaphanopteroidea - extinct Palaeodictyoptera - extinct Megasecoptera - extinct Archodonata - extinct Infraclass: Neoptera Orders Blattodea (cockroaches) Isoptera (termites) Mantodea (mantids) Dermaptera (earwigs) Plecoptera (stoneflies) Orthoptera (grasshoppers, etc) Phasmatodea (walking sticks) Embioptera (webspinners) Zoraptera... Transposons are sequences of DNA that can move around to different positions within the genome of a single cell, a process called Transposition. ... Transposase is an enzyme that binds to single-stranded DNA and can incorporate it into genomic DNA. Class I transposons encode a transposase which allows them to enable transposons to be cut from genomic DNA and be inserted at another location. ...

Controversies over genetic modification

See also Genetically modified food and Transgenic plants A genetically modified food is a food product containing some quantity of any genetically modified organism (GMO) as an ingredient. ... Transgenic plants are plants that have been genetically engineered using recombinant DNA techniques to make plants with new characteristics. ...

Genetic modification (GM) is the subject of controversy in its own right [4]. Some see the science itself as intolerable meddling with "natural" order, despite known examples of natural genetic crossings occurring throughout history. While some would like to see it banned, others push simply for required labeling of genetically modified food. Other controversies include the definition of patent and property pertaining to products of genetic engineering and the possibility of unforeseen global side effects as a result of modified organisms proliferating. The basic ethical issues involved in genetic research are discussed in the article on genetic engineering. A genetically modified food is a food product containing some quantity of any genetically modified organism (GMO) as an ingredient. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Genetically modified organism. ...

In 2004, Mendocino County, California became the first county in the United States to ban the production of GMOs. The measure passed with a 57% majority. In 2005, a standing committee of the government of Prince Edward Island in Canada began work to assess a proposal to ban the production of GMOs in the province. Mendocino County is a county located on Californias north coast, north of the San Francisco Bay Area and Sonoma County and west of the Central Valley. ... A standing committee is a subunit of a political or deliberative body established in a permanent fashion to aid the parent assembly in accomplishing its duties, usually by provided focused attention on one particular subject matter. ... Motto: Parva Sub Ingenti (The small under the protection of the great) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Charlottetown Largest city Charlottetown Lieutenant Governor J. Léonce Bernard Premier Pat Binns (PC) Area 5,660 km² (13th) Land 5,660 km² Water 0 km² (0%) Population (2004) Population 137,900...

Currently, there is little international consensus regarding the acceptability and effective role of modified "complete" organisms such as plants or animals. A great deal of the modern research that is illuminating complex biochemical processes and disease mechanisms makes vast use of genetic engineering.

The practice of genetic modification as a scientific technique is not restricted in the United States. Individual genetically modified crops (such as soybeans) are subject to intense study before being brought to market and are common in the United States, but estimates of their market saturation vary widely. Some countries in Europe have taken the opposite position, stating that genetic modification has not been proven safe, and therefore that they will not accept genetically modified food from the United States or any other country. This issue has been brought before the World Trade Organization, which determined that not allowing modified food into the country creates an unnecessary obstacle to international trade. Consequently, genetic modification within agriculture is an issue of some strong debate in the United States, the European Union, and some other countries. World map showing Europe (geographically) When considered a continent, Europe is the worlds second-smallest continent in terms of area, with an area of 10,600,000 km² (4,140,625 square miles), making it larger than Australia only. ... A genetically modified food is a food product containing some quantity of any genetically modified organism (GMO) as an ingredient. ... WTO Logo The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization which oversees a large number of agreements defining the rules of trade between its member states (WTO, 2004a). ...

Concern over the spread of genetically modified plant pollens has arisen, the claim being that natural plants can be cross-pollenated(bred) by the pollen modified plants. Pollen can be dispersed over large areas by wind, animals, and insects. Recent research has lent support to the concern when modified genes were found in normal plants up to 21 km (13 miles) away from the source, and also within close relatives of the original plants. SEM image of pollen grains from a variety of common plants: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), morning glory (Ipomea purpurea), hollyhock (Sildalcea malviflora), lily (Lilium auratum), primrose (Oenothera fruticosa), and castor bean (Ricinus communis). ...

Naturally-occurring genetic crossings

In nature, genes have crossed species and genera barriers in the past. Today's modern red wheat variety is the result of two natural crossings made long ago. It is made up of three groups of seven chromosomes. Each of those three groups came from a different wild wheat grass. First, two of the grasses became crossed, creating the durum wheats, which were the commercial grains of the first civilizations up through the Roman Republic. Subsequently, that 14-chromosome durum wheat became crossed with another wild grass to create what became modern red wheat at the time of the Roman Empire. patring Durum wheat (T. turgidum durum) is the only tetraploid species of wheat widely cultivated today. ... See also Roman Republic (18th century) and Roman Republic (19th century) The Roman Republic (Latin: Res Publica Romanorum) was the republican government of the city of Rome and its territories from 510 BC until the establishment of the Roman Empire, which sometimes placed at 44 BC the year of Caesar... The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Caesar Augustus). ...

However, what distiguishes genetic modification is that it recognises no boundaries. Thus it becomes possible to splice animal genes into plants, and vica versa, which would be impossible otherwise.

External link

• GM Foods - Safe? An Award Winning Round Table Discussion on the Safety of GM/GMO From The Vega Science Trust
• Non-GMO Organic Food News
• Genetic Engineering News - The Leading Publication in Biotechnology
• Database of all GM crops approved for commercial release