Biotechnology

Biotechnology How do genetic techniques affect Earth’s biodiversity? ● investigate the uses and applications of biotechnology (past, present and future), including:

– analysing the social implications and ethical uses of biotechnology, including plant and animal examples– researching future directions of the use of biotechnology– evaluating the potential benefits for society of research using genetic technologies – evaluating the changes to the Earth’s biodiversity due to genetic techniques

Genetic Technologies Does artificial manipulation of DNA have the potential to change populations forever?● investigate the uses and advantages of current genetic technologies that induce genetic change● compare the processes and outcomes of reproductive technologies, including but not limited to:

– artificial insemination– artificial pollination

● investigate and assess the effectiveness of cloning, including but not limited to: – whole organism cloning– gene cloning

● describe techniques and applications used in recombinant DNA technology, for example: – the development of transgenic organisms in agricultural and medical applications

● evaluate the benefits of using genetic technologies in agricultural, medical and industrial applications ● evaluate the effect on biodiversity of using biotechnology in agriculture ● interpret a range of secondary sources to assess the influence of social, economic and cultural contexts on a

range of biotechnologies

What is Biotechnology? 

Biotechnology is technology that utilizes biological systems, living organisms or parts of this to develop or create different products.

Brewing and baking bread are examples of processes that fall within the concept of biotechnology (use of yeast (= living organism) to produce the desired product). Such traditional processes usually utilize the living organisms in their natural form (or further developed by breeding), while the more modern form of biotechnology will generally involve a more advanced modification of the biological system or organism.

With the development of genetic engineering in the 1970s, research in biotechnology (and other related areas such as medicine, biology etc.) developed rapidly because of the new possibility to make changes in the organisms' genetic material (DNA).

Today, biotechnology covers many different disciplines (eg. genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, etc.). New technologies and products are developed every year within the areas of eg. medicine (development of new medicines and therapies), agriculture (development of genetically modified plants, biofuels, biological treatment) or industrial biotechnology (production of chemicals, paper, textiles and food).

Modern biotechnology is the term used to describe a range of processes and techniques especially at the molecular level.

Examples of biotechnology applications of particular interest to the department include cell culture, genomics, molecular marker-assisted breeding, cloning, bioprocessing and diagnostic testing as well as gene technology (genetic modification).

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WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF BIOTECHNOLOGY?Biotechnology may carry more risk than other scientific fields: microbes are tiny and difficult to detect, but the dangers are potentially vast. Further, engineered cells could divide on their own and spread in the wild, with the possibility of far-reaching consequences. Biotechnology could most likely prove harmful through the unintended consequences of research.  Sugarcane farmers in Australia in the 1930’s had a problem: cane beetles were destroying their crop. So, they reasoned that importing a natural predator, the cane toad, could be a natural form of pest control. What could go wrong? Well, the toads became a major nuisance themselves, spreading across the continent and eating the local fauna (except for, ironically, the cane beetle).While modern biotechnology solutions to society’s problems seem much more sophisticated than airdropping amphibians into Australia, this story should serve as a cautionary tale. To avoid blundering into disaster, the errors of the past should be acknowledged.In 2014, the Centre for Disease Control came under scrutiny after repeated errors led to scientists being exposed to Ebola, anthrax, and the flu. And a professor in the Netherlands came under fire in 2011 when his lab engineered a deadly, airborne version of the flu virus, mentioned above, and attempted to publish the details. These and other labs study viruses or toxins to better understand the threats they pose and to try to find cures, but their work could set off a public health emergency if a deadly material is released or mishandled as a result of human error.

Janet Parker was the last person to die of smallpox. It was 1978, and Parker was a medical photographer at the Birmingham University Medical School in England and worked one floor above the Medical Microbiology Department where smallpox research was being conducted. She became ill on August 11 and developed a rash on August 15 but was not diagnosed with smallpox until 9 days later. She died on September 11, 1978. Her mother, who was providing care for her, developed smallpox on September 7, despite having been vaccinated on August 24. An investigation performed afterward suggested that Janet Parker had been infected either via an airborne route through the medical school building’s duct system or by direct contact while visiting the microbiology corridor one floor above.

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Dolly the Sheep

Scottish embryologist, Iam Wilmut, named the cloned sheep Dolly after Dolly Parton the singer.

Black faced sheep never have white faces. Dolly's face being white was good proof that the experiment was successful, but scientists double checked Dolly's genetic material. They found that Dolly did have the exact same genetic material as the white-faced sheep that donated the nucleus. Dolly did not have any genetic material from the black faced sheep who was her mother.

The story was first published as a short report in a scientific journal called Nature, Volume 385, 1997, pages 810-812. Since that time, attempts at cloning at least 10

species of mammals have been made. Only seven attempts have been successful; cows, sheep, goats, mice, pigs, cats, and rabbits. The rate of success is very low.

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The Pros of Biotechnology (Benefits)1. It can improve health and reduce hunger simultaneously.Biotechnology has helped to improve the nutritional content of our food supply. Necessary vitamins and minerals can be produced in croplands and this reduces health issues that are related to a lack of nutrients. 2. It creates flexibility within the food chain.Biotechnology can also help croplands be able to produce foods that may not be possible under “regular” conditions. It is possible to create crops that are naturally resistant to pests. Although the amount of land our planet can provide is finite, biotechnology allows us to be able to use more of it for what we need.3. It offers medical advancement opportunities. Studies that involve the human genome have allowed us to understand more about genetic diseases and some cancers, creating more effective treatments for them – and sometimes cures. 4. It allows us to preserve resources.Biotechnology gives us an opportunity to extend the lifespan of our food supplies. Pasteur pioneered an approach of heating food products to remove harmful elements so they can be preserved for an extended period.5. It helps us minimize or eliminate waste products.Biotechnology allows us to create waste products that have better biodegradable properties. It allows us to manage landfills more effectively. That way we can begin to minimize the footprint being left for future generations.6. It can reduce infectious disease rates.Biotechnology has helped us to create vaccines. It has helped us be able to create treatments that reduce difficult symptoms of disease. It has even helped us to learn how infectious diseases can be transmitted so their transmission can be reduced. That allows us to protect those who are most vulnerable to these diseases, giving them a chance to live a happy, fulfilling life.

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The Cons of Biotechnology ( disadvantages)1. It creates an all-or-nothing approach.One of the biggest problems that biotechnology faces is a lack of genetic diversity. The processes included in this field can increase crop yields and improve medical science, but it comes at the price of a genetic bottleneck. Should something unforeseen happen, an entire crop or medical treatment opportunity could go to waste or even threaten the survival of certain species.2. It is a field of research with many unknowns.What happens if we interfere with the genetics of a person to treat a disorder? What happens to the environment if we dramatically alter crops to grow in locations that would normally not support crop growth? Future generations could pay the price for research that is happening today.3. It could ruin croplands.Biotechnology has allowed more vitamins and minerals to enter our food chain, but it could be coming at a cost. Many crops obtain their nutritional content from the soil in which they grow. If that soil is overloaded by the crop, it may lose its viability, even with crop rotation occurring. That may reduce the amount of growing time each land segment is able to provide while extending its recovery period at the same time.4. It turns human life into a commodity.In the United States, the Supreme Court has ruled that DNA which is lab manipulated is eligible to be patented. The foundation of this ruling was that altered DNA sequences are not found in nature. At the moment, complementary DNA, or cDNA, has been specifically mentioned as an example of what could be patented. Obtaining DNA to create altered DNA sequences for profit minimizes human life (or plant and animal life) to profit potential. It also opens the door to ethical and moral questions, such as when human life begins. 5. It can be used for destruction.All the benefits that biotechnology can provide could also be turned into a weapon that is used for mass destruction. Crops can be improved, but they can also be destroyed. Medicines can be made with biotechnology, but diseases can also be weaponized.

 

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Creating a Transgenic Organism

Transgenic organisms are genetically engineered to carry transgenes—genes from a different species—as part of their genome. Transgenes are usually generated by recombinant DNA and DNA cloning techniques. Transgenic bacteria, plants, and animals allow scientists to address biological queries and design practical solutions.

Scientists begin the process of transgenesis—introducing a transgene into an organism’s genome—by selecting an appropriate technique. A common biological method involves the virus-mediated introduction of foreign DNA into a host cell genome, called transduction. A popular chemical method uses calcium phosphate (Ca3(PO4)2). The method is based on the formation of a Ca3(PO4)2/DNA precipitate to facilitate DNA binding to and entering cells. Physical methods such as microinjection—a technique that uses a thin, glass needle to manually insert genetic material into cells—artificially introduce DNA by force.

Transgenes Can Be Introduced into Animals and Plants

In animals, the transgene is typically inserted into an early-stage, fertilized egg by microinjection. The hope is that the transgene will integrate into the germ cells—reproductive precursor cells that become gametes (i.e., egg or sperm)—so that it will express in all of the developing organism’s cells. Germline integration means that the transgene can be passed down through generations by breeding. The transgenic animals are backcrossed—the offspring are mated with the parent—to create lines of animals that are homozygous for the transgene.

Plant transgenesis routinely uses a biological method, such as bacterial vector delivery, to introduce foreign DNA into cells. Rhizobium radiobacter  is a soil-dwelling, pathogenic bacterium that can infect plants and integrate its plasmid DNA into the plant’s genome. Scientists have modified R. radiobacter so that the plasmid DNA can carry a transgene. Plant tissue samples are cultured with R. radiobacter to allow for infection and the integration of the transgene. These tissues are further cultured on selective media that induce shoot and root growth until the nascent plant can be

transferred to soil. These transgenic plants are backcrossed to create lines of high yield, transgenic plants.

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DNA cloning When you hear the word “cloning,” you may think of the cloning of whole organisms, such as Dolly the sheep. However, all it means to clone something is to make a genetically exact copy of it. In a molecular biology lab, what’s most often cloned is a gene or other small piece of DNA.

DNA cloning is the process of making multiple, identical copies of a particular piece of DNA. In a typical DNA cloning procedure, the gene or other DNA fragment of interest (perhaps a gene for a medically important human protein) is first inserted into a circular piece of DNA called a plasmid. The insertion is done using enzymes that “cut and paste” DNA, and it produces a molecule of recombinant DNA, or DNA assembled out of fragments from multiple sources.

Diagram showing the construction of a recombinant DNA molecule. A circular piece of plasmid DNA has overhangs on its ends that match

those of a gene fragment. The plasmid and gene fragment are joined together to produce a gene-containing plasmid. This gene-containing

plasmid is an example of recombinant DNA, or a DNA molecule assembled from DNA from multiple sources.

Next, the recombinant plasmid is introduced into bacteria. Bacteria carrying the plasmid are selected and grown up. As they reproduce, they replicate the plasmid and pass it on to their offspring, making copies of the DNA it contains.What is the point of making many copies of a DNA sequence in a plasmid? In some cases, we need lots of DNA copies to conduct experiments or build new plasmids. In other cases, the piece of DNA

encodes a useful protein, and the bacteria are used as “factories” to make the protein. For instance, the human insulin gene is expressed in E. coli bacteria to make insulin used by diabetics.

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Artificial Insemination (AI)? Artificial insemination is when semen is manually

placed into the female reproductive track.

What are the advantages of AI?1. Disease control. The most important diseases it protects against are transmission of

the herpes virus- equine coital exthanema - and contagious equine metritis, which is caused by a bacteria. In addition antibiotics can be added to the semen at the time of insemination to prevent bacterial infection.

2. Decreases chances of injury. Semen is generally only collected every other day in an AI programme, so there is much less chance for injury. Semen can be collected from stallions with problems. Each year stallions are either injured or have trouble breeding due to inherent libido (sexual behaviour) problems. Because semen only needs to be collected every other day it reduces the effects of breeding pressure and injuries.

3. Semen is evaluated each time it is collected. With AI we can look and measure parameters related to fertility every time we collect. One way to look at reproduction is to say that when we feel the testicles we are "feeling the future" and when looking at semen we are "looking at history" as one represents potential and the other the recent event of semen production.

4. Prevents stallion overuse.5. Allows more mares to be mated. AI lets us divide the semen up into as many doses

as he is capable of giving. Typically, that is around 10-15 doses on every other day collection schedule.

6. Permits breeding of mares with problems. Each year mares are presented for natural service that may not be psychologically ready for service.

7. Permits use of older valuable stallions. As stallions get older their sperm numbers decrease. This typically begins at around 13 years old.. AI allows deposition of the correct number of sperm to be made for each mare and removes the guesswork.

8. Allows mares to be bred at the best time for conception. Because we can store semen either cooled or frozen mares can be bred when they are most suited for conception. In a natural service programme this would necessitate breeding the stallion as many as 5-6 times per day. Most stallions would not handle a breeding schedule like that for very long.What are the disadvantages of AI?

1. Specialized equipment is needed. An artificial vagina (AV), thermometers, warmed containers and equipment non-spermicidal gel and equipment to measure motility

(warmed stage microscope) and sperm concentration are all necessary for AI to be practised properly.

2. Technical expertise is needed. Personnel need to know how to make the AV so that it is right for the stallion and then how to collect and process the semen properly.

3. Incorrectly practiced AI can cause problems. You would be surprised to learn just how often the wrong lubricating gel is used in the AV and that there have been weeks before anyone realised that the pregnancy rates were disastrous.

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