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Essay / Genetically modified foods: are they beneficial or harmful
Table of contentsDefine what we can call GMOs (genetically modified organisms)Are genetically modified organisms and foods more beneficial?ConclusionFoods are the nutrients that people or animals eat or drink or which the plant absorbs to maintain life and growth. With the world's population increasing dramatically, food production from natural resources could not meet their needs. Researchers therefore decided to produce more food using molecular techniques. This type of food is called genetically modified food (GM food), that is, food whose genetic material has been modified and which is not already present in nature. Because genetically modified foods are designed to increase nutrient content through mutation, they have many benefits for humans, such as increasing nutritional content, forming plants that are resistant to pests, drought, herbicides and cold. But at the same time, it also has negative impacts. It is genetically dangerous, causing organ damage and allergic reactions in the digestive tract. Genetically modified foods have positive and negative sides and in this essay we will analyze whether GMFs are more good or bad for us. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayDefine what we can call GMOs (genetically modified organisms)First of all, what are genetically modified organisms modified? According to the WHO (World Health Organization), “Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be defined as organisms (i.e. plants, animals or microorganisms) in which the genetic material (DNA) has been modified in a way that does not occur naturally through mating. and/or natural recombination. GMOs are produced using genetic engineering methods to insert a section of foreign gene into the body, which could have beneficial effects on the organism or the consumer. This could enable new ideas and development to resolve the sustainable global goals, set by world leaders in 2015, and one of the 17 goals was to end hunger by 2030. A study conducted by the FAO (Organization of Food and Agriculture) United Nations) said that the number of undernourished people in the world has increased for 3 years since 2014 and in just 1 year (2016-2017), there there was an increase of 17 million undernourished people. But are genetically modified foods the answer to the problems? Are genetically modified foods a benefit or a hindrance and are there other possibilities that could solve the problems? How are GMOs made? Once the desirable trait is identified, the scientist must identify the sequence of that gene and its location in the genome using the genomic library, which is “a collection of clones containing all the DNA sequences in the genome of an organism.” The gene can then be isolated and cut by a restriction enzyme and placed into a vector using DNA ligase. This vector is now placed into an embryonic stem cell or injected into the blastocyst with the expectation that it will travel into the embryonic stem cell. Tissue-specific promoters could also be used to ensure that the gene is specifically expressed in that tissue. A small percentage of the transgenic DNA could be inserted into the genome of the embryo thanks to DNA recombinase and its function ofDNA recombination. In the case of animals, the embryonic stem cell is now placed into a pseudo-pregnant female (Pseudo-pregnant defines a female after copulation with a vasectomized male. The animal behaves hormonally pregnant, which allows its use as a recipient of embryos; for example for the production of chimeras), which makes it possible to produce offspring homozygous for the transgene. Are genetically modified organisms and food more beneficial? Genetically modified foods could be the key to solving sustainable global challenges. To meet the food demand of an ever-growing population, we must first reduce our yield gap (difference between potential yield and actual yield) to achieve potential yield (yield of a cultivar grown with water and non-limiting and biotic nutrients). stress effectively controlled). This can be achieved by genetically modifying crops to be resistant to insects/pests/diseases or by increasing the survivability of crops in harsh environments such as fluctuating temperatures or low rainfall. This could benefit regions like northern India, where wheat production is only reaching 40% of its yield potential. An example of this is Bt corn, a genetically modified corn with genes inserted from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that produce a crystal protein toxic to pests such as the European corn borer, hence the name Bt corn. The European corn borer borrows and eats the stem of the plant, reducing its ability to absorb water or nutrients and decreasing its structural support. With the introduction of Bt corn, the use of herbicides and insecticides decreased by 141.5 million kg between 1996 and 2008, significantly reducing grower expenses while increasing yield. In Zaragoza, Spain, Bt maize saw a yield increase of 1,110 kg/hectare. an increase of 11.8%. Another of the 17 goals is good health and well-being, where 12.9% of the population suffers from undernourishment and almost 50,000 people die from infectious diseases. This could be improved by producing crops with increased mineral or vitamin content, such as rice with vitamin A. or provide a rapid process of producing antibiotics to combat bacterial infections such as penicillin. But are GMOs more beneficial than harmful? GMOs have foreign genes inserted into their genome, this changes the structure, the sequence of the host's DNA, this increases the mutation rate 5 (the frequency with which mutations take place at a given locus or in a population) as changes in the primary DNA sequence allow for more errors to be made during transcription and translation, which could lead to the production of proteins that are not associated with the organism. This could cause unwanted allegorical reactions or lead to the development of allergies. In 1999, a year after genetically modified soya became commercially available in the UK, the number of people with soya allergies increased by 50%. Ingesting foreign proteins could also lead to changes in the immune system; mice fed genetically modified peas that passed the allergy test suggested this would be a cause that would "lead to the synthesis of structural variants possessing altered immunogenicity " from the consumption of alpha-amylase inhibitor which is not present in non-genetically modified peas. GMOs could disrupt the symbiotic relationship between other organisms such as pollinators like bees, they help pollinate plants to.