Have you ever wondered what your favorite snacks are really made of, genetics-wise? My project explored the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in various foods. Read on to learn which of your favorite snacks have been genetically engineered!
Meet the team!
Charlotte Gilson
~
The PCR machine
Special guest: Gel Electrophoresis Apparatus
Creating a transgenic organism involves the introduction of genes to the organism’s original genome by way of biological vectors. The products attained from this type genetic engineering are referred to as genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and express transgenes derived from either the same or a different species of organism. There are three major steps in creating a genetically modified organism: identifying and isolating the desired transgene, inserting the transgene into the host's genome, and growing the engineered crop. When using biological methods to genetically modify an organism, two vectors are used when inserting the transgene into the main genome: the vector containing transgene DNA and the Ti plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Containing genes necessary for genetic incorporation to occur in the host plant, the latter is a vital inclusion to the process of creating GMOs (1). In order for a transgene to function in its new host, promoter and terminator sequences must be included, creating a gene cassette which regulates the expressed region of the transgene (2). CaMV35S is the most commonly-used promoter in modified plants; with the Ti plasmid comes the NOS terminator, the most common terminator (2).
(1) McBride, K. E., and K. R. Summerfelt. Improved Binary Vectors for Agrobacterium-Mediated Plant Transformation. 14 Feb. 1990. National Library of Medicine: National Center for Biotechnology Information, doi:10.1007/BF00018567. Accessed 16 Apr. 2021.
(2) MiniPCR GMO Learning Lab: Heart-Shaped Bananas. Amplyus, 2018.
Created with BioRender.com
To the left is a video describing my goal for this experiment, a brief overview of my methods, and an in-depth look at the results.
Genetic modification of crops has existed for thousands of years. The evolution of genetically modified organisms weighs heavily on artificial selection. Random mutations would occur in plants, and farmers would attempt at breeding the plants with the most beneficial qualities, thus expanding the population of desired plants and reducing the population of undesired plants. This type of artificial selection lies at the roots of GMO manufacturing and still persists to this day. Similar to natural selection, artificial selection can take hundreds of years to influence an entire population of crops. Modern-day technology, as described in my graphical abstract, provides scientists with the ability to “introduce novel sequences of DNA into existing genomes”(1) in order to create transgenic organisms beneficial to the consumer. This new and improved version of artificial selection stems from ancient practices of agricultural artificial selection.
(1) MiniPCR GMO Learning Lab: Heart-Shaped Bananas. Amplyus, 2018.