Genetically modified foods in our daily lives

Introduction

Food is any substance or materials eaten or drunk to provide nutritional support for the body or for pleasure. Our everyday meal contains so many kinds of foods, and we don’t know half of their origins, or contents. Many foods today are genetically modified or altered to make it tastier, or long lasting. These foods are not always healthy, so we should think before eating them. Let us see what they are.

What are genetically-modified foods?
The term GM food or GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) are generally used for crops or organism that are engineered or created for human or animal consumptions. GM organisms are created in laboratory through biotechnologists. Generally they are used to make the foods crops more resistant to pests or having more flavour or appearance. Traditionally, modifications were done through breeding, but recently scientists are using genetic engineering to create exact specifications of what they want. For example, geneticists of plants often isolate a gene responsible aimed at drought tolerance and add that gene into another plant. The genes used are not only from plants, but also from other sources also. Bacillus thuringiensis, a natural bacterium, produces crystal proteins lethal to insect larvae. These genes have been transferred into corn, enabling the corn to produce its own pesticides against insects such as the European corn borer.
The genetic creating involves few stages:

1.      Obtaining a copy of the gene required, where the scientists make a copy of the gene from its mRNA and then synthesis the gene artificially

2.      Put the gene into a vector (carrier), which is introduced into a host cell.

3.      Then the host cell is allowed to duplicate its DNA.

For plant modifications, viruses are used as carriers, in the plant cells, or even using guns, where the bullet made of gold or tungsten is coated with the required DNA onto the surface and shot using special guns.  Vectors such as Agrobacterium are used which are bacteria which enter a wounded plant. These carry the DNA which later leaves the bacteria and enter the plant DNA, so the plant grows accordingly.
Advantages:
So many varieties of plant crops and animal products which have made our life easy are made like:

1.      Herbicide-resistant crops: crops which are resistant to harmful herbs themselves are created like, herbicide resistant corn, wheat, sugar beet and oilseed rape.

2.      Pest-resistant crops: crops can be made pest-resistant through special genes, so that the farmers don’t have to spray harmful pesticides which harm the soil also. Few experiments were done on potatoes, tomatoes and alfalfa.

3.      Disease and weather resistant: Many diseases affect the plant and temperature also affects the plant growth (enzymes) so engineers have modified crops to make them resistant to it.

4.      Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance: drought and salt water are two common environments today, so engineers have made plants tolerant to them.

5.      Nutrition: Engineers have modified general foods so that they contain extra nutrition so that, the people who eat such foods as their main meal, would get all the nutrition.

6.      Pharmaceuticals: special vaccines and medicines are being produced by crops, and animal products. Many proteins and hormones are also produced using such methods, like transgenic sheep milk contain antitrypsin.

Disadvantages
The disadvantages of GM foods are:

• They may develop different and harmful properties.
• The farmers have to continuously produce the specific crop for long time for preservations of the specie.
• GM foods might change the microbial flora of the soil often causing degradation of essential microorganisms on soil.
• These foods, might even affect our or any animal’s DNA who consumes it.
• If in case food were antibiotic resistant, then their affects might enter the person consuming it also.
• Insects can develop resistant mechanism as they feed on such GM crops.
• Other organisms in the same medium might be affected also.
• Few of these important foods, can carry toxic materials also, creating human illness.
• Few consumer allergic to certain foods, might be affected some other GM foods which have traces of these foods. Few GM foods also can cause severe chemical reactions harmful to the body. In Brazil, individuals allergic to Brazil nuts were also allergic to the new GM soybean.

  

The table below:

Provides us with information of how many harmful substances were found in many GM foods.

Factors Affecting Manufacture of GM foods

Economic concerns

GM foods are costly, and especially when a new crop is developed, the cost of seeds goes rises and so farmers are not able to buy them easily. Bringing a GM food to market is a long and expensive process, and agri-biotech companies mainly wish to ensure a profitable return on their investment. These foods are expensive and many people cannot afford to buy them causing less demand and so less supply and production of such foods. Transgenic sheep milk costs about £ 50000 per mg which is pure 99.99%.

Ethical concerns

Genetically modified foods, are made by violating natural chain of food habits and life. We alter life according to our needs which is not ethical. There are Objections to consuming animal genes in plants and vice versa and also stress for animals, as they alter their DNA and life style and complete life is changed. Intrinsic concerns base on how people view their life, nature, religion, personal emotions and values. Few people believe that they have a feeling that mixing genes is like playing god and human beings should not intervene in God’s realm.

Environmental Concerns

GM foods cause unintended effects on the other organism for example, pollen from B.t. corn caused high mortality rates in monarch butterfly caterpillars as their seeds flew onto milkweed plants which these butterflies ate. These types of foods have however decreased the use of pesticides and herbicides so the environment and the soil are cleaner and less polluted. Gene transfer often to unintended species creating another change in their ecology.

Conclusion

Genetically modified foods have the power to save hunger problems, as less food is wasted and more are produced. Environment is cleaner and safer for all organisms for we have to spray fewer amounts of pesticides and herbicides. As the food grows for long time, the cost would decrease so more people can buy it by then. However there are many risks to our health also which we should consider and try to avoid.  This technology however is one of the jewels of 21^st century and should be kept improving for better and safer foods for us.