Final Update

How Does Genetically Modified Crops Improve Herbicide Tolerance Using Roundup Ready Method?

Non-GM and GM Corn
http://www.mi2g.com/images/gmo.jpg

Genetically modified organisms are creatures whose genome has been tampered with, by adding or removing particular DNA sequence. This method is also known as genetic engineering, which have currently brought us plethora benefit in our-day-to day life especially in terms of consumption. Most of the food products that we find in markets and the food that we intake are genetically modified. In fact, according to WebMD.com , up to 70% of the processed food sold in US are genetically altered. Live stocks are genetically modified to strengthen their metabolism, increase amount of milk, meat, fur and/ or other animal by-products. Crops are genetically modified to promote pest resistance, amplify nutrient content, herbicide tolerance level and also for numerous reasons. Genetic Engineering is indeed very popular especially since it compromises all its drawback with the advantages. To illustrate, in the picture above, the corn on top is non GMO, whereas the corn below is a GMO crop. Undeniably, the GMO corn will sell better in terms of appearance. The topic that will be discussed in this post will be regarding herbicide tolerance through the roundup ready method, along with its process, benefits, limitations, socio-ethical concerns and future developments.

The problem

Parasitic Plants

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwfhYYnmLYM

Every single day, farmers face a problem of unwanted weeds and plants growing in their soil. Some of these plants pose danger to their crops because they are invasive species that would "hinder the growth of the desired crops in terms of space, nutrients, water and sunlight." (Nature's turf, paragraph 1). Moreover, there are also parasitic plants that are too considered as weeds which could usually obtain its nutrition from the host plants and slowly killing it. The video explaining the types and details of parasitic plants could be found in the link attached above. Some examples of the parasitic plant is the Pityopus Californica, Balaphornosa Fungosa and multitude others. Some plants also "Can adapt to secrete toxins into the soil to deter other plants from germinating" (Burghardt, Garden Guides, paragraph 6). This process of releasing chemical that obstruct the capability of plants to reproduce is also known as allelopathy. Therefore weeds are detrimental for the crops as regards to competition in terms of growth factors and reproduction.

To prevent and eradicate weeds in their farms, manual labor is a painstaking and time consuming option for the farmers. This problem did not go unnoticed since agriculture is one of the key aspects to a thriving society throughout the world, hence a global issue. In the late 18th to the early 19th century, the first herbicide spray was developed and it was produced by the US Army Corps of Engineers. From then on, more and more herbicide products were created to manage weeds. However, the main problem with herbicide is that if farmers apply it or other plant-killing chemicals to the area, both the crops and foliage are exterminated. This is indeed a baffling problem because the weeds would not die if the crops live since herbicide could not discriminate between them. This, like the weeds being an agricultural concern too is also a global problem because it is present worldwide in places suitable for plants to thrive. To emphasize how global this problem is herbicide usage is common in 6 out of 7 continents, namely Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, North America and South America (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations).

Solution and How it Works

Roundup Ready Soybean Seeds
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20130220/
business/images/Supreme-Court-Seed-Dispute.jpg

Every single day, farmers face a problem of unwanted weeds and plants growing in their soil. Some of these plants pose danger to their crops because they are invasive species that would "hinder the growth of the desired crops in terms of space, nutrients, water and sunlight." (Nature's turf, paragraph 1). Moreover, there are also parasitic plants that are too considered as weeds which could usually obtain its nutrition from the host plants and slowly killing it. The video explaining the types and details of parasitic plants could be found in the link attached above. Some examples of the parasitic plant is the Pityopus Californica, Balaphornosa Fungosa and multitude others. Some plants also "Can adapt to secrete toxins into the soil to deter other plants from germinating" (Burghardt, Garden Guides, paragraph 6). This process of releasing chemical that obstruct the capability of plants to reproduce is also known as allelopathy. Therefore weeds are detrimental for the crops as regards to competition in terms of growth factors and reproduction.

To prevent and eradicate weeds in their farms, manual labor is a painstaking and time consuming option for the farmers. This problem did not go unnoticed since agriculture is one of the key aspects to a thriving society throughout the world, hence a global issue. In the late 18th to the early 19th century, the first herbicide spray was developed and it was produced by the US Army Corps of Engineers. From then on, more and more herbicide products were created to manage weeds. However, the main problem with herbicide is that if farmers apply it or other plant-killing chemicals to the area, both the crops and foliage are exterminated. This is indeed a baffling problem because the weeds would not die if the crops live since herbicide could not discriminate between them. This, like the weeds being an agricultural concern too is also a global problem because it is present worldwide in places suitable for plants to thrive. To emphasize how global this problem is herbicide usage is common in 6 out of 7 continents, namely Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, North America and South America (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations).

Phenylalanine structure
http://www.nootropicmind.com/wp-content
/uploads/2014/09/L-phenylalanine.png

Phenylalanine whose chemical structure could be seen in the picture beside, are indeed very significant because it is the key to flavonoid biosynthesis in plants, which is basically the chemical conversion in plants to ensure its survival. This includes pigments, protection against UV/ sunlight, nutrition transportation and multitude other aspects. Tyrosine or also known as tyrosine phosphatases is involved in regulating plants' stomatal movement, or in other words regulating the exchange of internal and external objects/ chemicals such as carbon dioxide or oxygen. The last amino acid, tryptophan, like phenylalanine also develops into multitude metabolites and chemicals in plants, making it a prominent factor in plant growth/ development.
 

 

Methods of Making Crops Roundup Ready

DNA transfer through A. Tumefaciens
http://www.nepadbiosafety.net/abne/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/agrobacterium.jpg

There is a multitude of ways in genetically modifying crops into roundup ready. The very first method of genetic modification is through the organism Agrobacterium Tumefaciens also known as A.Tumefaciens. It is categorized as a type of bacteria, which can mutate the genetic components of plants when infected by random insertion of their own DNA strand into the plants' genome and these DNA material is called T DNA, an abbreviation for transferred DNA. They primarily cause a disease called Crown Gall but can also cause tumors which hurts the plants' metabolism. However, due to technological advancement, this particular bacterium is also utilized by scientist to genetically modify plants and is considered as the most efficient method to do so. Scientists had been able to conduct large scale experiment regarding it. Firstly, they isolate the genetic material coding for the desired allele and may slightly modify its structure, codon or markers to ensure successful development of protein in the Agrobacterium Tumefaciens. Then it is inserted to the Ti Plasmid containing the T DNA, which will be inserted to the Agrobacterium Tumefaciens itself. Following this, is the exposure of specific plant cell to the A.Tumefaciens, allowing the transfer of DNA as shown in the diagram above. These modified cells is then cultured and regenerated into a genetically modified plant.

Biolistic Process

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqklR_8YRfA

Another method of genetically modifying crops into roundup ready is through a considerably old method called biolistics developed in the 1980s by John Stanford which is explained in the video above. In this method, DNA of plants are genetically modified by using high density gold or tungsten micro-particles. Before the insertion of these micro-particles into the designated plant cell using pressurized-helium-powered gene gun, it is previously coated with the DNA. The gene guns help the particles to travel in high velocity, allowing the particles to go through the cell walls and cell membranes with ease. The foremost benefit of this method of genetic engineering is that it is applicable to a broader range of plant tissues compared to the Agrobacterium Tumefaciens. It could also be utilized to transform only certain parts of the plant, for example the chloroplast and mitochondria exclusively.

Illustration of the electroporation process
http://oncosec.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/OMS_Poration_Graphic_Light.png

Lastly is a method called electroporation, which is a process of genetic engineering wherein new DNA is incorporated in the nucleus of a cell. It is done by electrocuting the cell, disrupting the plasma membrane, making it  temporarily more porous and permeable. The electrocuted cell will be placed in a special solution with the DNA corresponding to the selected traits and when the cell plasma becomes penetrable, it will enter the cell membrane. Thereupon these cells will be cultured using a protein-rich solution and its success will be confirmed.

Benefits of Roundup Ready Crops

The roundup ready crops would undeniably benefit agriculture throughout the world because it would discernibly simplify farmers job because they can now easily eradicate unwanted weed and plants, which hinders the growth of crops. This is so because these weed obtains the nutrition from the same land area and hence with this technology, growth rate of the crops would escalate because it would have all the nutrients from the soil to themselves, sunlight and water would also another factor. With more excess nutrients to store, the crops would also produce more and farmers would have a plenty and successful harvest, which profits the economy of an area or country. To emphasize this economical benefit, according to International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA), the US farm income of soybean escalated by 37008.6 million US dollar within 1996-2012 due to the genetic modification. 

Different Types of Herbicide Usage
http://www.epa.gov/caddis/images/herbicides1.jpg

In addition, this round up ready crops also has a vital role towards the environment. Based on the New York Times report, in most cases farmers use different types of herbicides which are usually have a longer lasting impact on the environment and animals compared to the glyphosate in Roundup. In other words, Roundup ready crops replaces the common type of herbicide with the Roundup, which is less destructive and detrimental towards the habitat. To prove my point, the graph on the left, clearly shows the comparison of herbicide usage and glyphosate is distinctly the highest in 2001. In short, roundup ready crops brings along great convenience to farmers, revamped economy and contributes to the decline in land contamination.

Limitations and Drawbacks

Rigid Ryegrass
http://www.weedscience.org/images/weedid/112.jpg

However, these Roundup Ready crop variation also has its own limitations and drawbacks. The main disadvantage is with regards to the rapid development of Roundup resistant crops that are immune to glyphosate. This is primarily caused by natural adaptation, cross-pollination and also mutation that benefits the particular plant species. The very first glyphosate resistant weed emerged in 1998 and is also known as the Rigid Ryegrass which could be seen in the picture on the left.  According to Chris Boerboom from University of Wisconsin and Micheal Owens from Iowa State University, there are 11 common glyphosate-resistant weed up to the year 2005. This clearly shows that the over usage of Roundup, can lead to adverse mutations (insertion, deletion, substitution, inversion, etc)  in surrounding ecosystem.

Anti-Roundup Ready Corn Campaign
Explaining How it is Created
http://www.nowtheendbegins.com/blog/?p=22101

Aside from that, another main concern is with regards to human health which is affected by the consumption of Roundup Ready Crops. Health is indubitably another complication because there had been no conclusive research done to show that roundup ready crops are safe for long term consumption. With the introduction of new genes, it might be unconsciously altering the entire genetic material, which may cause fatal allergies and may even cause cancer, which could be referred to in the figure to the right. "The first animal feeding trial of Monsanto weed-killer and Monsanto's NK603 roundup-resistant GM corn found that exposure levels currently (...) can cause tumours, multiple organ damage and premature death in rats" (nowtheendbegins.com, Buist, picture 1 caption). This substantially proves that there numerous diseases could be caused by consumption of GM crops. Moreover, with the health issue involved, labelling of food products sold is also another problem because people should have the right to know what they are actually consuming but by doing so, they would dwindle the market's demands of particular Roundup Ready crop.

Socio-Ethical Issues


Additionally, there are also numerous ethical and social health issues aroused by Roundup Ready genetically engineered crops. Like any other genetic alteration, the main ethical issue is mostly about religious beliefs as it is defined as ‘tampering with god’s creation’, making it religiously undesirable. The "Vatican officials remain largely supportive of genetically modified crops" (aljazeera.com, paragraph 1). Religions like Christian and Catholic are against Roundup Ready crops since it challenges some aspect of their biblical teachings. Sandra Nikkel, Ministry Coordinator of the Grand Rapids East Classis and Pastor of the multicultural Ministry at Eastern Avenue Christian Reformed Church responds, "The other problem (...) the desire to make money—at any cost" (mlivd.com, Krishef, paragraph 4). Here Sandra Nikkel is implying that the main ethical concern is to whom this Roundup Ready crops benefit economically, relating to another social concern. However, not all religious individuals disagree to GMO, in fact Fred Wooden, the senior pastor of Fountain Street Church believes that "If we were to be perfectly natural, meaning not interfering with nature in any way, we would have to abandon vaccinations, most drugs, most manufacturing mining and even farming. Clearly, we all ok with modifying nature." (mlivd.com, Krishef, paragraph 11). 

Illustration of seed sterilisation Using Electro-beam
http://www.sunmediaventures.in/images/fepnew/img9.jpg

The very last social issue is with regards to the company Monsanto itself. For their financial gain, Monsanto 'sterilizes' the seeds they sell, meaning that the roundup ready seeds would not be able to reproduce. The illustration of the process could be referred to on the left wherein seeds are sterilized using the method called Electro-beam. With the sterilization, farmers should repeatedly purchase their seeds. According to web.mit.edu, "This results in doubling the profits for the corporation" because farmers are also required to purchase the herbicide, economically burdening the farmers. Besides that, this also allows few companies to control the market and trade of a whole area, hence presenting them with great power, which could be misused.

Personally, I believe that genetic engineering, particularly Roundup Ready crops are not fundamentally detrimental to the society because it led to multitude advancement in the agricultural field. Some critics may argue that it is "playing with nature," but without "playing with nature" there are numerous of current profitable technology that would not be present up to this day. If it is wrong to develop Roundup Ready Crops, why is it right to select embryos to prevent genetic disorders since it is also "playing with nature"? On the other hand, the main subject that I disagree with is the companies obtaining great profit from sterilized Roundup Ready seeds because farmers develop a dependency to buy their seeds. With this, they can increase the price unreasonably and gain even more profit, oppressing the farmers in terms of economy. 


Conclusion


In conclusion, Roundup Ready crops had inadvertently change the agriculture of the world and for this reason also the food we eat. With this technology, farming is more practical and it benefits us economically (amount of crops produced) and also environmentally as glyphosate is more environmentally friendly than the active ingredient of other types of herbicide. On the other hand, it has detrimental health effects, religiously incorrect and also burden farmers with its unreasonably high price. In the future I believe, Monsanto should develop a new way to produce cheaper and more affordable seeds for farmers, especially since the company claims to be contributing in reducing starvation.


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Print:

• Gmos Are In Products We Use Every Day. "GET TO KNOW GMOS." GET TO KNOW GMOS (n.d.): 2-5. Print.Pollack, Andrew.
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• Morin, Monte. "Journal Retracts Controversial GMO Cancer Study." Los Angeles Times 29 Nov. 2013: n. pag. Print.