1

1
The Plant World and Genetic Engineering
Part I Transgenic Plants
Jana Klose, Greg Lampard UBC Biotechnology
Laboratory
2
What Is Biotechnology?

• Harnessing the natural biological processes of
  living systems for the benefit of mankind

• Biotechnology in the past
• making bread and cheese, brewing beer
• crossbreeding plants

• Modern biotechnology
• genetic engineering

3
Genetic Engineering

• The process of manipulating and transferring
  instructions carried by genes from one cell to
  another

4
DNA IS EVERYWHERE
5
DNA and Genes

• Genes the coding system for instructions
• A gene is a segment of DNA

Cytosine (C)
Guanine (G)
Adenine (A)
Thymine (T)
bases
6
Genes and Proteins
7
Restriction enzymes
As biological scissors
8
Plant Genetic Engineering
9
Plant Genetic Engineering Process
10
How are Transgenic Plants Produced?
Commonly Used Methods

• Agrobacterium tumefaciens
• Gene Gun / Biolistics
• Electroporation

11
Agrobacterium tumefaciens
12
Agrobacterium tumefaciens
13
Gene Gun Technique
14
Electroporation Technique
Power supply
15
Next Generation of Transgenic Crops

• Plant-based vaccines
• Enhanced nutritional content
• Functional foods and phytoceuticals
• Transgenic plants for phytoremediation
• Plant-derived plastics and polymers

16
The Plant World and Genetic Engineering Part
II What kind of products are there anyways?
Jana Klose, Greg Lampard UBC Biotechnology
Laboratory
17
Where is the technology being used?

• Frankenfood or Valued-added food?
• In 1999 approximately 70 of foodstuffs in North
  America contain components derived from GM crops

18
Why the !!_at_ Should I Support the Biotech
Industry?

• By genetically modifying plants we can
• Reduce pesticide use
• Conserve fuel and water
• Preserve non-pest insect populations
• Increase food production per hectare of farmland
• Enable crops to grow in sub-optimal conditions
• Increase the nutritional value of food

19
Current Products

• Transgenic Soybean
• Roundup Ready
• Resistant to Roundup Herbicide
• Reduces the amount of herbicide applied to crops
• Altered Fatty-acid content
• Changes the nutritional value

20
Current Products

• Canola
• Herbicide resistant
• Better for the environment
• Altered fatty-acid composition
• A value-added food

21
Current Products

• Tomato
• Flavr Savr Tomato
• Delayed softening
• Consumers get a better tasting tomato
• Failed
• Virus resistant tomato
• Resistant to pests
• Decreases the amount of pesticide applied to
  crops

22
Current Products

• Corn
• Bt CornThe Monarch Butterfly debate
• A microbial gene added results in the crop being
  resistant to insects
• Does it impact the Monarch Butterfly?
• Well planned experiments are critical to the
  survival of biotechnology

23
Current Products

• Cotton
• Yes clothes can be made from transgenic
  crops!
• Bollgard cotton
• Insect resistance
• Lowers pesticide usage

24
Current Products

• Squash
• Virus resistant
• Reduces crop loss due to infestation and
  decreases pesticide use

25
Current Products

• Papaya
• Virus resistant
• Restored the papaya industry in Hawaii
• Reduced crop loss
• Japan blocked imports of transgenic papaya

26
Current Products

• Golden Rice
• Biotechnologys poster child?
• A true value added food
• Vitamin A enriched rice prevents disease and
  blindness
• Golden in colour

27
Can GMOs have health benefits?

• Some plants have been altered to increase the
  nutritional value
• Pharmaceuticals, Plantibodies, and Edible
  Vaccines
• Research has looked at transgenic plants as
  production vehicles for anti-cancer antibodies
• Edible vaccines are closer than we think

28
Edible Vaccines

• Plants producing vaccines could eliminate or
  simplify vaccine distribution problems in
  developing nations

29
Edible Vaccines

• May have advantages over injected vaccines
• Plants being studied include potato, banana,
  papaya, tomato, lettuce, carrot, rice, wheat,
  corn and soybean Quite a salad!

30
Edible Vaccines

• Tomato and potato plant can make antigens from
  Hepatitis B, E. Coli and V. cholerae
• Feeding to test animals induces an immune
  response
• Potatoes fed to human volunteers induced and
  immune response to an inactive form of the E.
  coli toxin

31
Whats next?

• How will all of these products be regulated?
• Who decides if they are safe?
• How do I know if I am eating food derived from a
  GMO?

32
Other Cool Plant Biotech Products

• Blue Carnations and Roses
• Nature can not make these
• Non-allergenic peanuts
• Kids can take peanut butter sandwiches to school
  again!
• Decaffeinated coffee
• Less processing

33
Whats next?

• How will all of these products be regulated?
• Who decides if they are safe?
• How do I know if I am eating food derived from a
  GMO?

34
The Plant World and Genetic Engineering Part
III Public Issues
Jana Klose, Greg Lampard UBC Biotechnology
Laboratory
35
Whoa! Who is Keeping us Safe?

• Canada
• Health Canada
• Human Safety
• Stringent evaluation of safety of GM foods
• How was the product made?
• Is the GM product different from the non-modified
  product (Composition and Nutritional value)?
• Is there potential for toxicity of allergic
  reactions?

36
Safety

• Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)
• Regulation of the non-human effects
• Stringent Safety testing
• Environmental impact field trials
• Impact on Livestock feeding trials
• Registration of all crop products under the Seeds
  Act

37
Food Safety

• GM products must meet ALL standards
• Additional testing can be requested at any time
  before or after approval

38
What about allergic reactions?

• All new food products (GM and non-GM) must
  undergo strict testing
• Testing includes
• Potential for an allergic response
• Comparison of the food versus all known allergens

39
What about allergic reactions?

• Many people have food allergies
• The brazil nut example
• A transgenic soybean with an inserted gene from
  Brazil nuts was created
• It was later found that this gene encoded a major
  allergen
• As a result of this assessment, commercial
  interest in this transgenic soybean variety was
  abandoned
• Steve L. Taylor Department of Food Science
  Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE
  68583-0919, USAhttp//www.agbios.com/articles/200
  0151-A.htm

40
Are GM Foods Labeled?

• Policy is controlled by Health Canada and the
  CFIA
• Currently approximately 70 of foodstuffs in
  North America contain components derived from GM
  crops
• Voluntary labelling

41
Public Acceptance

• What is it?
• What do I get out of it?
• Is it safe?
• Do I have choice?
• Is it natural?

42
Public Acceptance

• What is it?
• Producers and consumers must come together to
  educate each other on what the technology is and
  also what consumers want
• Producers have not done a good job
• Consumers must decide!

43
Public Acceptance

• What do I get?
• Much of the current products directly benefit
  farmers
• What would the reaction be if a non-allergenic
  peanut or edible vaccine was produced?
• Perhaps resources should be devoted to useful
  products

44
Public Acceptance

• Is it safe?
• Safety testing is stringent, but short term only
• Results made public?
• Labeling
• Do I have a choice?
• Labeling products would give consumers the choice
  to use or not to use

45
Public Acceptance

• Is it natural?
• Genetic modification of plants is a natural
  process Recall the Agrobacterium example from
  lecture 1

46
Summary

• Transgenic plants have potential to impact many
  areas, including our food supply and our
  healthcare system
• There is no doubt that the technology works
• It is essential that proper testing of all
  products be carried out prior to commercialization

47
Summary

• Labeling products would allow consumers to choose
  what they want to consume
• Educate yourself!