what is biotechnology?
The process of using living organisms to modify products or for specific uses
what is a germplasm?
a living genetic resource such as seeds or tissue, that are maintained for the purpose of animal and plant breeding, preservation and other research uses
Give 2 examples of biotech
Beer brewing - yeast introduced Penicillin - mould bio engineered DNA technology - cystic fibrosis, diabetes DNA cloning Embryo cloning
what are the 2 types of cloning?
- Artificial embryo twinning
- Somatic cell nuclear transfer
What is artificial embryo twinning?
technique used to mimic the natural process of creating identical twins
describe the process of artificial embryo twinning
- Early embryo is separated into individual cells - undergo mitotic division in petri dish
- Embryos placed back into mother to develop
describe the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer
- Body cell (somatic cells) from an adult is isolated
- Nucleus removed - placed in an egg cell
- egg cell w/ new nucleus now starts to behave like a freshly fertilized egg
- Once developed into an embryo, is placed in surrogate mother - gives birth
which type of cloning was dolly the sheep made from?
Somatic cell nuclear transfer
what is somatic cell nuclear transfer
When a somatic cell nucleus is inserted into an egg cell to develop into an embryo that is placed in a surrogate mother for birthing
Name 3 pros of biotechnology
- can cure/ treat diseases
- produce more food for growing populations
- can save endangered species
- advance science to open up more possibilities
Name 3 cons of biotechnology
- religious objection (playing god)
- unethical uses (designer babies)
- animal cruelty
- expensive
- more food intolerances/ allergies
- medicine-resistant superbugs
what is genetic engineering
the process of using recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology to alter the genetic makeup of an organism.
Give 3 examples of genetically engineered products
golden rice = contains beta-carotene to make it healthier – people who can’t access vitamins get a healthy dose of vitamin A in golden rice – good for third world countries
Enviropigs
Glofish
Banana Vaccine
Insecticide corn
Non-crying onions
Describe the case study of enviropigs
Enviropigs = transgenic pigs that have the phytase gene in salivary glands to break down phosphorus
- so they excrete 75% less phosphorus
Name 3 pros for genetic engineering
- More precise and rapid technology to introduce new traits in livestock and crops
- Medicine: production of human proteins in bacteria, insulin, various growth factors, hormones, blood clotting factor.
- Improving crop and livestock production to feed the growing population
- Improving nutritional content of crops, golden rice, vitamins and minerals
- Crop resistance to drought, salt, flooding
- Plant resistant to pests, insecticides, herbicides
Name 3 cons against genetic engineering
- Ethical issues
- Animal cruelty
- Ambiguity on where to draw boundaries – glofish, designer babies
- Can cause/ trigger allergies (food)
- Environmental damage
- Expensive research
- Do not know long term effets
- Cross-pollination – possibility of resistant weeds being pollinated and becoming unmanageable
- Wild gene pools can be altered
- Interrupts evolution
- Can harm food webs – ecology – may negatively affect biodiversity
What is somatic cell therapy
A type of gene therapy where a gene is introduced into a patient to help them recover from a disease
What is germline therapy
a type of gene therapy where changes are made to genes that will affect subsequent generations
why is germline therapy problematic?
Because it will affect subsequent generations - the long term effects are unknown
-
Cell Organelles20
-
Molecular Transport21
-
Classification10
-
Homeostasis9
-
Respiration26
-
Plant Tissue57
-
Plant Organs35
-
MENDELIAN GENETICS21
-
DNA transcription19
-
DNA translation8
-
DNA mutations10
-
Mitosis32
-
Meiosis16
-
Spermatogenesis & oogenesis15
-
Evolution24
-
Population Genetics37
-
Gene interactions29
-
Biotechnology19
-
DNA replication23
-
Protein structure16
-
Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium10
