Genetic modification

Question 1

what is genetic engineering

Answer 1

the process of changing the genome of an organism, often by introducing genes from another organism so that it has desirable characteristics

Question 2

what 2 characteristics are GM crops made to have

Answer 2

resistant to insect attack
resistant to herbicides

Question 3

what is the method to make identical copies of a plant

Answer 3

cell culture

Question 4

how is a cell culture for plant tissue made

Answer 4

tissue from the sample cut
placed into agar jelly containing plant hormones and nutrients
samples grow into tiny plants

Question 5

what are 3 uses of animal cell cultures

Answer 5

test the effect of drugs on cells
check for cancer cells in a sample from a patient
produce important proteins (antibodies)

Question 6

what are the 3 uses of plant cell cultures?

Answer 6

produce hundreds of identical GM plants from just one parent plant
cell can be growing in a culture to make plant products (medicines)
produce disease-free plants

Question 7

what are the steps to making GM bacteria that produce insulin

Answer 7

1. DNA from human cells is cut into species using a restriction enzyme, these will make staggered cuts across the double-stranded DNA, leaving a few unpaired bases at each end called sticky ends
2. bacteria cells contain small circles of DNA called plasmids, the same enzyme will be used to cut the plasmid open, leaving complementary sticky ends
3. the pieces of DNA containing the insulin gene are mixed with the plasmids. the bases in the sticky ends pair up, and then an enzyme called DNA ligase is used to link the DNA back into a continuous plasmid
4. the plasmids are inserted back into the bacteria where they will now make insulin

Question 8

what enzyme is used to remove insulin enzyme from human chromosome

Answer 8

restriction enzyme

Question 9

what do you call the unpaired bases left at the end

Answer 9

sticky ends

Question 10

what is the name of the enzyme used to rejoin a plasmid back into a continuous circle

Answer 10

DNA ligase

Question 11

what is a vector (in terms of Genetics)

Answer 11

the name of anything that carries the new gene into a cell

Question 12

what is the vector for insulin bacteria

Answer 12

plasmids

Question 13

what is an example of a GM plant

Answer 13

BT plants

Question 14

what are BT plants

Answer 14

plants that are insect-resistance, contain a toxin made by BT bacteria that is poisonous to insects

Question 15

what are the 2 advantages of BT plants

Answer 15

crop damage is reduced so crop yield is increased
less chemical insecticide is needed

Question 16

what are 3 disadvantages of BT plants

Answer 16

more expensive than normal plants
pests may become resistant to toxins
may pollinate with closely related plants and make them resistant to pests as well

Question 17

what are 2 solutions to meeting the growing population need

Answer 17

fertilisers
biological control

Question 18

what are 2 advantages of fertilisers

Answer 18

• increase crop yield
• a good way to use animal waste

Question 19

what are the 3 disadvantages of fertilisers?

Answer 19

excess fertilisers can cause eutrophication
expensive
can reduce soil biodiversity

Question 20

what is biological control

Answer 20

using natural predators, parasites or diseases of the pest to keep their population low

Question 21

what are 3 advantages of biological control

Answer 21

the pest cannot become resistant
the control agent can become specific to the pest
avoids using chemical pesticides

Question 22

what are 2 disadvantages of biological control

Answer 22

biological control does not get rid of the pest completely
the control agent may become a pest