Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO): Transgenic Crops and Recombinant DNA Technology

Agricultural plants are one of the most frequently cited examples of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Some benefits of genetic engineering in agriculture are increased crop yields, reduced costs for food or drug production, reduced need for pesticides, enhanced nutrient composition and food quality, resistance to pests and disease, greater food security, and medical benefits to the world’s growing population. Advances have also been made in developing crops that mature faster and tolerate aluminum, boron, salt, drought, frost, and other environmental stressors, allowing plants to grow in conditions where they might not otherwise flourish.

Other applications include the production of nonprotein (bioplastic) or nonindustrial (ornamental plant) products. A number of animals have also been genetically engineered to increase yield and decrease susceptibility to disease.

For example, salmon have been engineered to grow larger and mature faster and cattle have been enhanced to exhibit resistance to mad cow disease (United States Department of Energy)

Table 1: Examples of GMOs Resulting from Agricultural Biotechnology

Genetically Conferred Trait	Example Organism	Genetic Change
APPROVED COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS
Herbicide tolerance	Soybean	Glyphosate herbicide (Roundup) tolerance conferred by expression of a glyphosate-tolerant form of the plant enzyme 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) isolated from the soil bacteriumAgrobacterium tumefaciens, strain CP4
Insect resistance	Corn	Resistance to insect pests, specifically the European corn borer, through expression of the insecticidal protein Cry1Ab from Bacillus thuringiensis
Altered fatty acid composition	Canola	High laurate levels achieved by inserting thegene for ACP thioesterase from the California bay tree Umbellularia californica
Virus resistance	Plum	Resistance to plum pox virus conferred by insertion of a coat protein (CP) gene from the virus
PRODUCTS STILL IN DEVELOPMENT
Vitamin enrichment	Rice	Three genes for the manufacture of beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A, in the endosperm of the rice prevent its removal (from husks) during milling
Vaccines	Tobacco	Hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) produced in transgenic tobacco induces immune response when injected into mice
Oral vaccines	Maize	Fusion protein (F) from Newcastle disease virus (NDV) expressed in corn seeds induces an immune response when fed to chickens
Faster maturation	Coho salmon	A type 1 growth hormone gene injected into fertilized fish eggs results in 6.2% retention of the vector at one year of age, as well as significantly increased growth rates

 

For more details visit : http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome