The technique of gene cloning has important applications in medicine, biotechnology, agriculture and research.
The technique of gene cloning has important applications in medicine, biotechnology, agriculture and research. Discuss two applications of this technique, which in your opinion, have had significant impact on society.
Gene cloning is achieved by inserting a required gene into a vector DNA. This produces Recombinant DNA and when introduced to a host cell the vector is copied. It divides to produce lots of copies of the gene of interest (Willey, Sherwood and Woolverton, 2012).
There are many applications of gene cloning, the two which will be discussed in this essay are; genetically modified crops and using genetic fingerprinting for identification and relationship testing.
Genetically modified crops can contain genes from sources outside the plant species, these express new proteins, regulate gene expression, mark specific parts of the genome and provide identifying clues the gene transfer has been achieved. Using gene cloning in agriculture has had a great impact on society (Bailey and Lappé, 2002).
Crops with an altered genome can be grown with positive attributes which make them more desirable to the consumer; taller, bigger, juicer for example. This is of great benefit to the farmer as there will be less wastage and more profit, thus increasing the agricultural economy. Crops can also be grown to be resistant to herbicides; this provides the farmer with more flexibility and again increases profit. Seed manufacturers are also using gene cloning as an advantage and are able to produce seeds with sterile pollen. This is of great advantage to the manufacturer because farmers have to re-buy their seeds each year. In addition, the manufacturer maintains its unique identity of the seed and it reduces genetic pollution (Brooker et al, 2011).
The above are all examples of positive social impact; however, the main impacts of genetically modified crops are in fact negative.
There is a lot of controversy regarding genetically modified crops; Human Rights groups
Gene cloning is achieved by inserting a required gene into a vector DNA. This produces Recombinant DNA and when introduced to a host cell the vector is copied. It divides to produce lots of copies of the gene of interest (Willey, Sherwood and Woolverton, 2012).
There are many applications of gene cloning, the two which will be discussed in this essay are; genetically modified crops and using genetic fingerprinting for identification and relationship testing.
Genetically modified crops can contain genes from sources outside the plant species, these express new proteins, regulate gene expression, mark specific parts of the genome and provide identifying clues the gene transfer has been achieved. Using gene cloning in agriculture has had a great impact on society (Bailey and Lappé, 2002).
Crops with an altered genome can be grown with positive attributes which make them more desirable to the consumer; taller, bigger, juicer for example. This is of great benefit to the farmer as there will be less wastage and more profit, thus increasing the agricultural economy. Crops can also be grown to be resistant to herbicides; this provides the farmer with more flexibility and again increases profit. Seed manufacturers are also using gene cloning as an advantage and are able to produce seeds with sterile pollen. This is of great advantage to the manufacturer because farmers have to re-buy their seeds each year. In addition, the manufacturer maintains its unique identity of the seed and it reduces genetic pollution (Brooker et al, 2011).
The above are all examples of positive social impact; however, the main impacts of genetically modified crops are in fact negative.
There is a lot of controversy regarding genetically modified crops; Human Rights groups
References: Bailey, B. Loopé, M. (2002) Engineering the Farm: The Social and Ethical Aspects of Agricultural Biotechnology Brooker, R. Widmaier, E. Graham, L. Stirling, P. (2011) Biology. 2nd Edn. New York: McGraw-Hill. James, S. Nordby, J. (2009) Forensic Science: An Introduction to Scientific and Investigative Techniques. 3rd Edn. United States of America: CPC Press. Lori, B. Andrews, J. (1991) ‘Legal aspects of Genetic Information’. The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine [online] (64), 29-40. Available from [1 Nov 2012]