Agrobacterium tumefaciens

The effect of NaCl treatment on growth and development of Arabidopsis thaliana Introduction Arabidopsis thaliana is a small flowering plant native to Europe and Asia. It is part of the mustard (Brassicaceae) family and is quite common and widespread, found in habitats such as rocky ground, sand dunes and disturbed habitats (e.g. weed gardens and waste ground). It has a 6 week generation time. On the first week two cotyledons emerge from the seed and more leaves develop up until the fourth to…

products, canola oil, cottonseed oil and yellow corn, including corn syrup and corn oil in the U.S. are from GMO crops” (Dresser and Siegal). You may ask how is a GMO seed engineered? Tom Warhol and Alex Rich explain that a soil microbe, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, enables scientists to inject foreign genes into plants. An example of this is taking a gene from a flounder and inserting it into a tomato to make it more cold resistant (Kimbrell). In 1994, the first GMO food to be sold in grocery…

Advances in biology have led to many life altering medications, treatments, and solutions to molecular issues. One such region of biology that has altered scientists’ stances on creating a perfect product is the research being done on recombinant DNA. Recombinant DNA is any single molecule containing DNA sequences from two or more organisms. The process of creating recombinant DNA relies on the use of restriction enzymes, gel electrophoresis, and DNA ligase. The first step in creating this new…

A transgene is a gene that is transferred into a host crop plant in the process of genetic engineering (Aldridge 2). One of the main methods used to introduce a transgene into a crop is by using the soil bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The soil bacterium “naturally infects plants, as a vector to carry the gene into plant cells.” The second main method for introducing a transgene into a plant is by using a gene gun to shoot DNA coated particles of the transgene into the…

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally (Genetically Modified, 2006). GMOs are produced by forcing DNA from one organism into another. Soybeans, corn, canola, plums, and rice are few of the GMOs occurring in our world. Products continue to be developed and experimented in laboratories. Naturally modified organisms bring up the question about GMOs and if there is a difference between the two.…

The new soil microbe, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, had first been tested for the production of crops to alter their genetic code to make them resistant to certain insects and herbicides. It wasn’t until 1994 that the first genetically engineered foods had hit the shelves of grocery stores…

Introducing Genes from other Organisms to Improve Efficiency Besides using just genes from the plant itself, scientists have been able to introduce other genes from other organisms into the plant cells, one of the first being (Fructose-1, 6-Sedoheptulose-1, 7-biphosphate). The (Fructose-1, 6-Sedoheptulose-1, 7-biphosphate) gene comes from cyanobacteria and was introduced to a transgenic tobacco plant. Once again, through the use of overexpression, the tobacco plant showed an increased…

P. aeruginosa is a gram-negative non-sporulating bacillus that belongs to the phylum of Proteobacteria. It can adapt and thrive in different niches, ranging from water/soil to plant/animal tissues. Even though it is commonly found in the environment, it frequently causes infections in plants and animals (1). Luke (1862) was the first to report P. aeruginosa in infections as he observed rod-shaped particles in blue-green pus of some infections. This coloration is a hallmark of P.…

Selective breeding is the human interference in the genetic transfer in animals and plants. Humans take the idea of natural selection where instead of the environment selecting for the alleles that are best suited for the organism to survive in the wild, humans select rare desirable phenotypic traits in organisms and breed them with each other in order produce an offspring containing those traits. Desirable traits include leaner meat in animals, or better quality milk in cows for commercial uses…

Imagine sinking your teeth into Thanksgiving dinner. What do we have here? Ah yes! There’s some corn over here, soaked with temptatious butter and drenched in salt and pepper. The turkey in all it’s glory, the savory aroma filling your nostrils as you patiently wait your turn to grab the Thanksgiving necessity. All the stuffing, maybe even some potatoes. Oh! Don’t forget about the pumpkin pie! We Americans are so lucky that we have abundant access to food. Food that is delicious. Food that…