Biotechnological applications of biochemical pathways

Question 1

Applications of CRISPR-Cas9 in plant breeding

Answer 1

• Improving photosynthetic efficiency
• Increasing crop yields
• Improving crop quality
• Speeding up hybrid breeding

Question 2

Improving photosynthetic efficiency

Answer 2

CRISPR-Cas9 could improve the efficiency of Rubisco in CO2 fixation by reducing its ability to bind to oxygen and undergo photorespiration, and instead improve its ability to associate with CO2

Question 3

Increasing crop yields

Answer 3

CRISPR-Cas9 could eliminate negative side effects (with traditional gene editing techniques) and improve these yield-related traits by inserting genes to improve yield or knocking out genes that have a negative effect.

Question 4

Improving crop quality

Answer 4

CRISPR-Cas9 can greatly enhance the quantity, and quality of the crops produced. → alter the gluten and nutrient content, storage and visual appearance of crops.
- Rice has been altered to improve its eating and cooking qualities by reducing the grain’s overall sugar content. Scientists use CRISPR-Cas9 to knock out the Waxy gene.
- The shelf life of tomatoes and their appearance has been improved using CRISPR-Cas9 to enhance the levels of lycopene. Lycopene is the bright red carotenoid that gives the fruit their colour.

Question 5

Speeding up hybrid breeding

Answer 5

CRISPR-Cas9 and hybrid breeding has allowed scientists to shorten the growth time for a plant, enabling it to reach maturity earlier, increasing crop yields in the long term.

Question 6

Biomass

Answer 6

Biomass is organic material from plants and animals. It is the microbes present in air, soil, water, decaying organic matter and food. It contains stored energy from the Sun and energy stored by plants through photosynthesis
Biomass can be converted through fermentation by microbes to liquid biofuels or biogas that can be burned as fuels.

Question 7

Advantage / disadvantage of biomass

Answer 7

Advantage - is renewable, cost effective, available in large quantities
Disadvantages - expensive (may not be worth the price in some areas), requires large amount of space

Question 8

Applications and use of use of biomass

Answer 8

Biodiesel
Ethanol

Question 9

Biodiesel

Answer 9

made from animal fats, recycled cooking oil and a variety of vegetable oils. Australia’s biofuel is produced from wastes and by-products

Question 10

Ethanol

Answer 10

Ethanol-based fuels are manufactured from fermented sugars (starches and glucose) found in photosynthetic plants. These sugars are a product of photosynthesis and are then able to be fermented by bacteria to produce ethanol as a by-product.