13-09-2017, 03:30 PM
Biotechnology is the use of living systems and organisms to develop or manufacture products, or "any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms or derivatives thereof to manufacture or modify products or processes for specific use" (United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, Art. 2). Depending on the tools and applications, it often overlaps with (related) fields of bioengineering, biomedical engineering, biomanufacturing, molecular engineering, etc.
For thousands of years humanity has used biotechnology in agriculture, food production and medicine. It is believed that the term was coined in 1919 by the Hungarian engineer Károly Ereky. In the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, biotechnology has expanded to include new and diverse sciences such as genomics, recombinant genetic techniques, applied immunology and the development of pharmaceutical therapies and diagnostic tests.
farming
Genetically modified crops ("transgenic crops" or "transgenic crops") are plants used in agriculture, whose DNA has been modified with genetic engineering techniques. In most cases the objective is to introduce a new feature to the plant that does not occur naturally in the species.
Examples of food crops include resistance to certain pests, diseases, environmental stressors, resistance to chemical treatments (eg resistance to a herbicide), reduction of deterioration or improvement of the nutrient profile of the crop. Examples in non-food crops include the production of pharmaceutical agents, biofuels and other industrially useful goods, as well as for bioremediation.
Farmers have widely adopted GM technology. Between 1996 and 2011, the total area of land cultivated with transgenic crops had increased by a factor of 94, from 17,000 square kilometers (4,200,000 acres) to 1,600,000 km2 (395 million acres). Ten percent of the world's arable land was planted in 2010. As of 2011, 11 different transgenic crops were commercially grown on 39 million hectares (159 million hectares) in 29 countries including the United States, Brazil, Argentina, India, Canada, China, Paraguay, Pakistan, South Africa, Uruguay, Bolivia, Australia, Philippines, Myanmar, Burkina Faso, Mexico and Spain.
Genetically modified foods are foods produced from organisms that have introduced specific changes in their DNA with genetic engineering methods. These techniques have allowed the introduction of new crop traits as well as much greater control over the genetic structure of a food than previously provided by methods such as selective breeding and mutation reproduction. The commercial sale of genetically modified foods began in 1994, when Calgene first marketed its Flavr Savr delayed ripening tomato. To date, most of the genetic modifications of food have focused mainly on cash crops that are heavily demanded by farmers, such as soybeans, corn, canola and cottonseed oil. These have been designed for resistance to pathogens and herbicides and better nutrient profiles. Transgenic cattle have also been developed experimentally, although as of November 2013 none are currently on the market.
There is a scientific consensus that the currently available foods derived from transgenic crops do not pose a greater risk to human health than conventional foods, but that each GM food must be tested on a case-by-case basis before introduction. However, members of the public are much less likely than scientists to perceive GM foods as safe. The legal and regulatory status of genetically modified foods varies from country to country, with some countries prohibiting or restricting them, and others allowing them with very different degrees of regulation.
Transgenic crops also provide a number of ecological benefits, if not overused. However, opponents have opposed GM crops themselves on a number of grounds, including environmental concerns, whether food produced from transgenic crops is safe, whether GM crops are needed to meet global food needs and economic concerns raised by the fact that these bodies are subject to intellectual property law.
For thousands of years humanity has used biotechnology in agriculture, food production and medicine. It is believed that the term was coined in 1919 by the Hungarian engineer Károly Ereky. In the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, biotechnology has expanded to include new and diverse sciences such as genomics, recombinant genetic techniques, applied immunology and the development of pharmaceutical therapies and diagnostic tests.
farming
Genetically modified crops ("transgenic crops" or "transgenic crops") are plants used in agriculture, whose DNA has been modified with genetic engineering techniques. In most cases the objective is to introduce a new feature to the plant that does not occur naturally in the species.
Examples of food crops include resistance to certain pests, diseases, environmental stressors, resistance to chemical treatments (eg resistance to a herbicide), reduction of deterioration or improvement of the nutrient profile of the crop. Examples in non-food crops include the production of pharmaceutical agents, biofuels and other industrially useful goods, as well as for bioremediation.
Farmers have widely adopted GM technology. Between 1996 and 2011, the total area of land cultivated with transgenic crops had increased by a factor of 94, from 17,000 square kilometers (4,200,000 acres) to 1,600,000 km2 (395 million acres). Ten percent of the world's arable land was planted in 2010. As of 2011, 11 different transgenic crops were commercially grown on 39 million hectares (159 million hectares) in 29 countries including the United States, Brazil, Argentina, India, Canada, China, Paraguay, Pakistan, South Africa, Uruguay, Bolivia, Australia, Philippines, Myanmar, Burkina Faso, Mexico and Spain.
Genetically modified foods are foods produced from organisms that have introduced specific changes in their DNA with genetic engineering methods. These techniques have allowed the introduction of new crop traits as well as much greater control over the genetic structure of a food than previously provided by methods such as selective breeding and mutation reproduction. The commercial sale of genetically modified foods began in 1994, when Calgene first marketed its Flavr Savr delayed ripening tomato. To date, most of the genetic modifications of food have focused mainly on cash crops that are heavily demanded by farmers, such as soybeans, corn, canola and cottonseed oil. These have been designed for resistance to pathogens and herbicides and better nutrient profiles. Transgenic cattle have also been developed experimentally, although as of November 2013 none are currently on the market.
There is a scientific consensus that the currently available foods derived from transgenic crops do not pose a greater risk to human health than conventional foods, but that each GM food must be tested on a case-by-case basis before introduction. However, members of the public are much less likely than scientists to perceive GM foods as safe. The legal and regulatory status of genetically modified foods varies from country to country, with some countries prohibiting or restricting them, and others allowing them with very different degrees of regulation.
Transgenic crops also provide a number of ecological benefits, if not overused. However, opponents have opposed GM crops themselves on a number of grounds, including environmental concerns, whether food produced from transgenic crops is safe, whether GM crops are needed to meet global food needs and economic concerns raised by the fact that these bodies are subject to intellectual property law.