... for getting a desired gene into a plant. One technique makes use of a soil bacterium, Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The BBC News explains that this microbe, nicknamed the " first genetic engineer", has the ability to insert sections of DNA into plants. The bacterium naturally does this to force the plants to produce the particular chemicals it needs to survive. Scientists have ... Whitman writes that crop losses from insect pests can be staggering, resulting in overwhelming financial loss for farmers and starvation in developing countries. Farmers typically use tons of chemical pesticides a...

• Word Count: 3593
• Approx Pages: 14
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... engineered soy." Plants aren't a docile as we think. Even the simple tomato plant produces complex poisonous compounds. "Many plants, such as tomatoes and potatoes, make very complicated chemical compounds, including some that can be poisonous."" Genetically modified plants pose a risk to Nature as well. The monarch butterfly is one example "Recent studies by Cornell University and Iowa ... beings through runoff into water reservoirs. Biotechnologists may have a better solution: engineered corn that itself produces a natural pesticide. This eliminates the indiscriminate impact of spraying...

• Word Count: 5179
• Approx Pages: 21
• Grade Level: High School

... are various methods to transfer the gene. One such method is the Agrobacterium method. "Agrobacterium tumefaciens is a soil microorganism that acts as a natural genetic engineer. It can insert a piece of its DNA into the chromosome of a plant cell" (Monsanto 1). For plants that won't work with this method ... to an unpredictable and uncontrollable spread of possibly harmful crops. Biological pollution is a serious consequence, because "while chemical toxins may be cleaned up, genetic engineering truly gives pollution a life of its own" (Environmental Hazards 1). Genetically engineered fo...

• Word Count: 1935
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... to use a large amount of pesticide. Most people would rather not eat foods that are sprayed with these dangerous chemicals. This is why it may be cheaper and safer to engineer a crop to be pest resistant. Such genes have been proven effective in resistance to plant diseases and cold. An antifreeze gene has been use to make plants such as potatoes ... sense have to be repeatedly sprayed to survive. One of the chemicals used is called Monitor. One farmer said he wouldn't go into a field sprayed with the chemical for at least 5 days. The chemical has been proven to cause damage do the huma...

• Word Count: 1312
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... is also sold by Monsanto, better known as Roundup, hence the name Roundup Ready soybeans. So farmers are buying these tolerant beans just so they can spray them with this chemical and not have to worry about them dying like every other plant life it touches, or at least that is the idea. This way Monsanto is getting paid twice for ... done to see what kind of health risks these GMO's can pose. Rural Advancement Foundation International (RAFI) dubs roundup Ready seeds "Terminator Seeds-. Monsanto's goal is to create a scheme to engineer crops to kill their own seeds in the second generat...

• Word Count: 2323
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• Grade Level: High School

... , insects, animals or even humans, into plants. " "It is well established that most natural bacteria do not cause disease. After many years of experimentation, microbiologists have demonstrated that they can engineer bacteria that are just as safe as their natural counterparts." Currently there are many crops that are being grown commercially that have already been genetically altered. These crops include soybeans ... rigorous. In order for a product to pass it must have substantial equivalence. Substantial equivalence is the basis of international guidelines and testing of GE food. This...

• Word Count: 2733
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: Undergraduate