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Do you know what genetic engineering involves? Have you heard of GMOs? How about the applications of genetic engineering? This article discusses genetic engineering and its application. It also compares the different methods used to create DNA fragments in genetic engineering (aka the gene technology).Genetic engineering is the process of using advanced DNA technology to modify the genetic content of…
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Jetzt kostenlos anmeldenDo you know what genetic engineering involves? Have you heard of GMOs? How about the applications of genetic engineering? This article discusses genetic engineering and its application. It also compares the different methods used to create DNA fragments in genetic engineering (aka the gene technology).
Genetic engineering is the process of using advanced DNA technology to modify the genetic content of an organism. Scientists can use genetic engineering to isolate genes and then combine them with the genome of the recipient DNA. The DNA created from this combination is called recombinant DNA.
The organism that contains recombinant DNA is a transgenic or a genetically modified organism (GMO), which can be as simple as bacteria or as complex as plants and animals.
Modifying the genetic makeup of organisms is a complex process that involves utilising genetic engineering techniques in multiple steps.
Genetic engineering aims to develop GMOs with more desirable outcomes. Crops, such as corn, soybeans, and cotton can be genetically modified to resist pesticides. This helps farmers have a better yield since they can use pesticides to eradicate pests without damaging the crops themselves. Bacteria can also be genetically modified. Scientists can introduce a gene that encodes a valuable protein (a drug or a hormone such as insulin) into a bacterium. By growing the new bacterial colonies in bulk, they can collect and purify the desired protein and use it for pharmaceutical or industrial purposes.
The genetic code is universal, meaning it is the same in all organisms. Therefore, the DNA is transcribed and translated within the transgenic organisms the same way it is in the donor organism, producing the same protein.
Here are some benefits of genetic engineering:
Genetic engineering is not all benefits. There are some implications and disadvantages that come with it. These include:
We can break down the process of creating recombinant DNA and transferring it successfully to create a GMO into five main steps:
Vectors are carriers for delivering foreign genetic material, such as a functional gene, directly into a cell.
Transformation describes the cell's genetic modification via direct uptake and inclusion of foreign genetic materials from its surroundings.
Identifying and isolating a specific gene that is a few hundred bases in length amongst millions of bases in eukaryotic DNA is quite challenging. There are three main techniques that scientists use to create DNA fragments:
This process uses a particular enzyme called reverse transcriptase. This enzyme naturally occurs in retroviruses such as HIV, and it creates DNA strands based on mRNA molecules.
Complementary DNA or cDNA is synthesised via the reverse transcription procedure based on a single-stranded RNA molecule such as mRNA.
Restriction endonucleases (RE) are enzymes that are naturally part of the bacteria's defence mechanism. They act by cutting the foreign DNA molecules.
There are various types of REs with active sites complementary to specific bases nucleotide sequences. These sequences are called recognitions sites, since each RE creates incisions in the DNA specifically at these locations.
We can classify REs into two main groups based on how they cut the DNA:
The gene machine is the most modern technique where scientists create DNA fragments in a laboratory using computers and special devices.
They first identify the protein of interest and examine its constituting amino acid sequence. Then, scientists can determine the mRNA and DNA sequences that could encode that protein by using the genetic code in reverse.
The obtained DNA sequence can then be entered into the computer. The computer checks the DNA fragments for biosafety and biosecurity, ensuring that it follows the various ethical regulations and does not violate international regulations. The computer then creates a series of small single-stranded nucleotides with overlapping sequences in an automated process. These strands are called oligonucleotides and can be assembled to generate the DNA sequence of the desired gene. Lastly, the engineered DNA strand is amplified and converted to the double-stranded DNA molecule using PCR.
Oligonucleotides are polynucleotides that contain relatively small numbers of nucleotides.
The gene machine technique is accurate and can be conducted in as little as ten days. It also creates DNA strands that do not contain any non-coding regions (introns) and can be transcribed and translated by prokaryotic systems.
Table 1. Advantages and disadvantages of different gene technologies summarised.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
Reverse transcriptase technique |
|
|
Restriction endonuclease technique |
|
|
Gene machines |
|
|
Genetic technologies in areas of stem cells, cloning and gene therapy. It can also be used to create plant GMOs, such as soybean and corn, resistant to pesticides and herbicides.
Gene technology is used to transfer a gene of interest, created in the lab or isolated from an organism to another organism.
Recombinant DNA technology combines two DNA molecules from different origins together. This technology introduces genes of value to organisms and creates GMO applications in medicine, science, agriculture, and industry.
Recombinant DNA technology has been proven to be beneficial in producing vaccines, producing hormones, such as insulin, for hormone therapies, and creating crops that give a better yield and are resistant to pesticides and herbicides.
Recombinant DNA is formed by artifically combining two or more DNA molecules. This process involves five steps:
Recombinant DNA technology has proven helpful in producing vaccines, hormones for hormone therapies, clotting factors for treating haemophilia and creating crops that give a better yield and are resistant to pesticides and herbicides.
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