Week 11: Questions

Question 1

Based upon the information you have read in the case study and the video on Golden Rice, would you support the use of this product in countries where there is a high incidence of people with Vitamin A deficiency? Explain your answer.

Answer 1

Yes because genetic engineering can be used on rice to help with the negative effects of vitamin A deficiency. It can offer solutions to those in underdeveloped countries where they do not have the means to nourish themselves and get the vitamins they need in other ways

Question 2

What is the function of a fruit, for a plant?

Answer 2

It is the way that plant seeds can disperse
Animals eat the fruit and when the seeds pass through their digestive system, they are planted elsewhere and begin a new life

Question 3

Does a baking potato come from the stem or the root of a potato plant?

Answer 3

The stem because potatoes are underground stems called tubulars
Each “eye” (indentation on the potato) is a node from which a leaf and new stem can grow

Question 4

What are the four types of organs that all flowering plants have?

Answer 4

Roots
Anchors a plant to its surface and enables it to absorb water and nutrients from the soil
Not always underground

Stems
Connects a plant’s roots to its leaves and flowers
Provides the structural support for the plant
Allow plant to grow taller to compete for sunlight

Leaves
A structure attached to the stems by a stalk
The place in the plants where photosynthesis occurs and food molecules are made (plant’s biochemical factories)

Flowers
A structure used for sexual reproduction
Produces seeds and fruits

Question 5

What are the parts of a flower?

Answer 5

Sepal
The outer protective cover of a flower bud

Petal
Showiest part of the flower

Stamen
The male part of a flower

Carpel
The female part of a flower

Question 6

What are the parts of a seed?

Answer 6

Endosperm
Cells that surround a plant embryo and form the bulk of the seed

Seed coat
A protective cover over the seed that keeps it from dying out

Question 7

What is the formation of a fruit?

Answer 7

Seeds from inside the female part of a flower in the ovary and as the seeds ripen, the ovary develops into a fruit

Question 8

What is the equation for photosynthesis?

Answer 8

Water (6H2O) + carbon dioxide (6CO2) → sunlight → sugar (C6H12O6) + oxygen (6O2)

Question 9

What does each molecule in the equation do?

Answer 9

Water
Supplies carbon and oxygen

Carbon dioxide
Supplies electrons and hydrogen

Sunlight
Energy source that drives photosynthesis

Sugar
Molecule that is produced from this reaction

Oxygen
Gas produced from splitting water

Question 10

Overall what does photosynthesis do?

Answer 10

It converts water and carbon dioxide into sugar
Plants are then able to provide food for many species because they contain sugar, which is a carbohydrate

Question 11

Why are plants mostly green?

Answer 11

Because chlorophyll reflects a green light

Question 12

We can genetically engineered plants to gain benefits:

Answer 12

Pesticide prevention
Pests damage crops and require pesticide, both of which cost the industry money
A bacterium (Bt) that produces toxins that kill pests (protein that binds to intestinal cells of pests and prevents them from feeding), but leaves beneficial insects crops unharmed
This can be inserted into plants so they produce their own pesticide, which saves money

Herbicide resistance
Weeds damage crops and require herbicide to be killed, but this damages crops in the process
Glyphosate (roundup) is a herbicide that kills weeds, but does not affect plants due to an enzyme in a bacterium (Agrobacterium) that is not affected by it
This can be inserted into plants to kill weeds, but not crops, which saves crops

Increased nutritional value
We can increase the nutritional value of the food we eat by genetically engineering healthier plants
Ex. golden rice

Question 13

Once DNA has been isolated and cloned, why can’t it just be physically inserted into a cell and become functional?

Answer 13

The organism’s enzymes would break down the foreign DNA as if it were an infection

Question 14

What is the process called when a cell has incorporated foreign DNA into its own genome?

Answer 14

Transformation

Question 15

How was Golden Rice produced?

Answer 15

Potrykus and Beyer bathed small fragments of rice plants with a solution of transformed bacteria.
The bacteria infected the plant fragments and only the ones that had the desired genes (crt1 and psy) were selected for further study

Question 16

What are the steps that genetic engineering projects follow?

Answer 16

Define the problem
Clone the genes
Package the genes
Transform the cells
Confirm the strain

Question 17

Briefly describe one example of the use of genetic engineering in each of the fields of medicine, bioremediation, and industry. Include in your discussion what was done prior to use of genetically engineered organisms in the example you used and the benefits of using engineered organisms over previous techniques.

Answer 17

Medicine
Diabetics were previously treated with insulin from pigs or cattle because it was too expensive and not available in large quantities
Genetic engineering allowed for human insulin to be inserted into a bacterium and now insulin is produced by bacteria, yeast and other organisms

Industry
Oil spills were being cleaned by chemicals and solvents
Bioremediation allowed for oil spills to be cleaned up by made by genetic engineered bacteria

Question 18

Why do critics refer to genetically modified food as “Frankenfood?”

Answer 18

Because these foods often combine genes from several species into one

Question 19

Now that you have read and heard more about the risks of GMOs, do you think that products containing GMOs should be required to have packaging with labels to inform consumers of their presence? Explain the reason for your answer.

Answer 19

Yes they should so that the consumer is aware of what they are putting into their body and can make that decision for themselves.

Question 20

What are the three main concerns about genetically engineered foods?

Answer 20

Safety
Considering foods are made of a combination of genes and genes create proteins which can trigger allergic reactions, are genetically engineered foods safe?

Economic considerations
Genetically engineered foods may have financial implications because they require a profit in some way

Effectiveness
It is difficult to tell if genetically engineered foods are a good solution and if it would be better to invest the money spent on it in a better way