Gene manipulation has been the upcoming field of biology since the early nineteen seventies. This prosperous field has benefits for both the agricultural and the medical field. The diminishing of diseases, especially congenital disorders, reduction of pollution, eradication of world hunger, and increased longevity are just some of the possibilities which scientists foresee. Many of the benefits of biotechnology have already been put into practice. The results are, in a number of cases, nothing less than astonishing. There are two main types of gene manipulation which could be used in such fields as agricultural and medical treatment. In germline manipulation the changes made are passed onto the next generation, while somatic gene therapy encompasses all of the cells, excluding sperm and egg cells. .
The first form of genetic engineering began with a man named Mendel, a monk in the late nineteenth century, who was the first to even formulate the concept of the gene from his experiments on pea plants, which is a form of germline manipulation. Since Mendel, other scientists have continued in agricultural engineering, which deals with the cross breeding of plants and cattle to maximize their productivity. Through time geneticists have continued to find better methods and strategies for improving the quantity of food from plants and improving the amount of milk and meat that cattle produce. With one respect to plant engineering, scientists are now working on splicing the genes needed for the production of 1-lysine, an amino acid which has a nutritional value for humans. By enhancing the nutritional value of corn in some Third World countries, an expansion of food supplies would be unnecessary, benefitting not only the Third world country, but those wealthy nations donating food. (Sylvester and Klotz 20). The manipulation of plant's genes that regulate photosynthesis can also increase plant productivity or even produce plants that manufacture natural pesticides.
