MODULE 6 IQ2: Biotechnology

Question 1

biotechnology meaning

Answer 1

use of living organisms, biological processes or biological products to create new products that are useful to humans

Question 2

types of past biotechnology

Answer 2

selective breeding, fermentation, ancient antibiotics

Question 3

what is selective breeding

Answer 3

choosing particular desirable characteristics and breeding individuals that possess these traits together to produce offspring that exhibit favourable characteristics

Question 4

example 1 of selective breeding

Answer 4

wheat –> einkorn (T. boeoticum) and goat grass (A. speltoides)
- einkorn was cross-pollinated with goat grass to produce emmer (Triticum dicoccoides)
- this was cross bred with another goat grass (A. squarrosa) to produce durum/pasta wheat
- the durum species was re-crossed with parents to give rise to modern wheat

Question 5

benefits of selectively bred wheat

Answer 5

• larger seeds –> increased grain yield
• non-shattering rachis
• loss of seed dormancy
• improves disease resistance

Question 6

example 2 of selective breeding

Answer 6

cow –> selected on the criteria of:
- reasonable rapid growth rate
flexible diet
- no adversion to breeding in captivity
- relatively pleasant disposition
- modifiable social heirarchy

Question 7

downsides of selectively bred cow

Answer 7

• decrease in animal welfare
• decrease in genetic variation and biodiversity
• gene linkage of negative traits with positive traits

Question 8

what is fermentation

Answer 8

process that converts sugars into energy. generally processed via glucose –> ethanol + carbon dioxide

Question 9

example of fermentation

Answer 9

yoghurt
- lactose is broken down into glucose and galactose
- glucose is broken down to lactic acid

Question 10

what is ancient antibiotics

Answer 10

form of treatment that is used to treat bacterial infections
- mouldy bread or honey used by Egyptians
- 600 BC mouldy soybean curds used to treat boils in China

Question 11

DNA insertion methods

Answer 11

microinjection, Ti plasmid insertion, gene gun

Question 12

microinjection process

Answer 12

• fine glass needle to insert foreign gene into nuclei of host organism during embryonic state
• offspring of these embryos contain genes from other species and is therefore transgenic

Question 13

Ti plasmid insertion process

Answer 13

bacterium agobacterium temefaciens –> causes development of disease crown gall in plants by inserting own DNA into hosts DNA
- splices foreign gene of interest into plasmid of bacterium
- bacteria is now vector for host plant
- mainly used to create BT cotton

Question 14

gene gun process

Answer 14

• metal atoms (usually tungsten particles) fired at high rate via gene gun
• fired at nuclei of plant cells

Question 15

transgenic organisms

Answer 15

organism that has received gene from another species, usually via the process of recombinant DNA

Question 16

example 1 of transgenic organism

Answer 16

BT cotton
- contain 1 or more foreign genes derived from soil-dwelling bacterium –> produced crystal insecticidal proteins (Cry proteins) effective in killing caterpillar pests

Question 17

example 2 of transgenic organism

Answer 17

golden rice
- biosynthesis of beta-carotene, precursor of vitamin A, in edible parts of rice

Question 18

present biotechnology

Answer 18

artificial insemination, artificial fertilisation, polymerase chain reaction, recombinant DNA technology

Question 19

future biotechnology

Answer 19

gene therapy, pharmacogenomics, CRISPR-Cas9

Question 20

gene therapy process

Answer 20

if a specific gene is identified for a genetic disease, gene therapy will be used to:
- inactivate or knock out defective gene completely
- deliver new gene to help fight disease
- repair abnormal genes
- control expression of particular gene

Question 21

pharmacogenomics process

Answer 21

• sequencing of patient’s relevant genes to identify SNPs
• by comparing with known SNPs, optimal choice of drugs can be made
  main goal:
• prediction of patient’s response to drug
• improved drug discovery

Question 22

genome editing meaning

Answer 22

group of technologies that give scientists the ability to change organism’s DNA

Question 23

CRISPR-Cas9 process

Answer 23

• when infected with virus, bacteria capture small pieces of virus’ DNA and inserts into own DNA
• forms CRISPR arrays –> allows bacteria to remember virus
• when virus attacks again, bacteria produces RNA segments from CRISPR arrays that recognise and attach to specific regions in virus’ DNA
• bacteria use Cas9 to cut DNA apart

Question 24

CRISPR-Cas9 for gene editing

Answer 24

• small piece of RNA with short guide sequence binds to specific target sequence in cell’s DNA
• attached to Cas9 enzyme
• guide RNA recognises intended DNA sequence and Cas9 enzyme cuts DNA at targeted location
• DNA machinery adds or deletes pieces of genetic material to make changes to DNA by replacing existing segment with customised DNA sequence

Question 25

privacy and data ownership

Answer 25

• privacy and patient confidentiality
• psychological impact and stigma that you have the predisposition to a genetic disorder
• great number of leaks of privacy

Question 26

legal implications

Answer 26

• storage of DNA can be useful for crime or forensics
• downsides: contamination from crime sites may lead to incorrect conviction, easy for databases to be exploited if controlled incorrectly

Question 27

germline editing

Answer 27

• can edit genomes to prevent genetic diseases and provide immunity to contagious diseases
• designer babies created
• discriminates the pre-determination of what positive and negative traits are

Question 28

equality of access

Answer 28

• extremely expensive
  IVF: $10 000 per cycle
• wealthy can continue to have designer babies with genetic advantages
• risk of further inequality

Question 29

animal rights

Answer 29

• inserted transgene can cause benefits for humans but might harm the animal –> violation of animal rights
• certain religious and philosophies do not support the use of animals in experiments or foods

Question 30

societal ethical dilemmas with transgenic organisms

Answer 30

should we create transgenic human embryos? should genetically modified food be labelled?

Question 31

ethical issues with transgenic organisms

Answer 31

societal ethical dilemmas, general safety, off-target effects, labelling, access and patents

Question 32

general safety with transgenic organisms

Answer 32

• research animals that are engineered to be models of human disease might escape and infect human or animal
• provides opportunities for new and more resilience strains of a disease
• organs from genetically modified animals used in human transplant surgery may transmit viral diseases

Question 33

off-target effects (CRISPR-Cas9) effects on transgenic organisms

Answer 33

gene therapies might cause unintended mutations

Question 34

labelling with transgenic organisms

Answer 34

• consumers can choose whether to eat them or not

Question 35

access and patents with transgenic organisms

Answer 35

• concern for those that buy GM crops as companies control the rights and patents of it