Biotechnology II
I've decide to do a presentation for my project instead of a paper/article. It's easier for me to talk about things rather than trying to explain them on paper especially about GMOs and my hypothetical solution.
Anemia in Africa is very common among the populations and are most prevalent in preschool-aged children and women. My hypothetical solution for the high percentage of Anemia in the area is using popular staple crops such as Purple Yams from the area and using techniques commonly used in the GMO world to force the Purple Yams to produce and provide more B12 vitamin to help prevent the Anemia. The most common GMO technique is that of switching on or off genes. This was done in the Golden Rice Project when they added two genes to switch on the gene to produce β-carotene.
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I've tweaked my project and I'm going to focus more on the mechanics of genetically engineered foods & my hypothetical solution for Anemia in Sub-Saharan Africa. I'd still like to focus on using the Purple Yams, indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa. What I plan to do is use the B12 vitamin in the Puple Yam. The Golden Rice project did close to the same thing. The scientists behind the project Focused on Areas of South-East Asia and the Vitamin A deficiencies they suffer from.
The Golden Rice project began in the 90's and was introduced to the world in 2004. They discovered that all rices have the mechanics to produce β-carotene but had to be switched on by the plant phytoene synthase gene (PSY) and a bacterial phytoene desaturase gene (CRTI). The formation of lycopene is a result of the genes being input. This is the switch to turn on the β-carotene (Vitamin A) gene. Sub-Saharan African diets consist mainly of staple crops, the most popular one being Purple Yams (Dioscorea Alata). “Production estimates for the main food crops [in 1999] were yams, 1,771,000 tons.” (Chauvin, Food Production and Consumption)
I switched from using an animal based protein found in egg whites to using the B9 or B12 vitamins to use in the Yams due to the large percentage of Anemia in regions of Africa. Anemia, blindness, & Cretinism affect millions due to iron & vitamin deficiencies. Anemia levels in Africa have not changes in about 20 years and are most prevalent in preschool-aged children and women. Anemia causes low red blood cell count, low hemoglobin in the red blood cells, or red blood cells that do not function as they should due to the lack of B9 (folate) & B12 vitamins. The B12 vitamin is responsible for keeping the nerves and blood cells, specifically red blood cells, healthy & working properly. The lack of the B12 causes the body to become weak and tired. The lack of the B9 (folate) vitamin can also cause severe birth defects and affects about 200,000 defects per year. The vitamin is helpful for making folic acid, DNA and other genetic material and is needed for cells to divide. When the body doesn't function properly in these aspects, mutations in the code can happen and cause the birth defects we see. Protocol 1 During the first part of the first part of this lab, we made plates of E. Coli that had expressed the GFP plasmid. We placed the E. Coli and the GFP in a gel with LB, Ampicillin and Arabinose. We used Ampicillin because the GFP Plasimid has an Ampicillin resistant gene and adding the Amp. kills off the weaker plasmids. Our group got amazing results after incubation and we believe this to be a result of using an inoculation loop instead of a hockey stick to to spread the bacteria before incubation. Our plates glowed far more than we expected. On plate 1, we had large colonies that grew on the outer part of the plate. On plate 2, there were far more satellite colonies toward the middle of the plate. We used two of those colonies to carry out the rest of the lab. During this protocol, I learned while using the inoculation loops, you have to be careful to let it cool after sterilization so you don't burn and kill the bacterial colonies grown. I also learned that the purpose of the CaCl2 was to help the E. Coli gain the ability to incorporate plasmid DNA allowing it to be transformed. Protocol 2 In this part we took a single satellite colony and place it in a solution of LB, Ampicillin, and Arabinose just like the plate but in a liquid form. We then placed it in the incubator overnight again. We ended up with 2 ml of liquid that looked like glowing goo. It lit up under the UV light. I learned that before incubation, shaking the mixture helps to create more Oxygen for the bacteria to grow. We also place the tubes sideways to create more surface area. This allowed more of the bacteria to get Oxygen and grow. Summary
We inserted a Green Florescent Protein into a colony of E. Coli. We then incubated the E. Coli to grow, then grew it more in a liquid medium and got it to express the gene. We then isolated the GFP and collected more then we had started with. We now have a singular collection of only the GFP plasimid. It amazes me that the cells in our bodies literally control everything we do. Each cell has an entire copy of our DNA and though each cell is responsible for something different, it has the capability to do any other function. Ten thousand trillion cell are responsible for every person’s life and development.
Many cells’ purposes are unknown to us. The use of Nitric Oxide in human cell was not known until the 80s. It has many different functions with different cells. Each cell has a different life span. Some live a month or so, some a year, some your entire life. “There isn’t a single bit of any of us—not so much as a stray molecule—that was part of us nine years ago.” says Bill Bryson. We renew constantly. We are now able to use tool to examine these cells at over 1000x their size. Leeuwenhoek made over 200 reports to the Royal Society with only fact based information and drawings, no interpretation. He examined many things of which could be useful and had not been examined before. |