Rishav Guha
The Golden Grain
The World Health Organization states that an estimated 250 million children are Vitamin – A deficient ("WHO"). Every year 250,000 to 500,000 of these children go blind, half of them dying within 12 months. Vitamin A deficiency is the leading cause of preventable childhood blindness and is one of the most prominent causes of death in children. Golden Rice is a genetically engineered product designed to combat this widespread deficiency in areas where they 're most prominent, in an affordable manner. Golden Rice has faced immense controversy and opposition, and although that is important in any endeavor that deals with human health, the issue needs to be made more aware, because it maybe an inexpensive solution to
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In rice-based societies, the absence of β-carotene in rice grains manifests itself in a marked incidence of blindness and susceptibility to disease, leading to an increased incidence of premature death of small children, the weakest link in the chain.” ("The Golden Rice Project").
Surprisingly, rice plants do produce provitamin A, but only in the non-edible part of the grain. Golden Rice overcomes this problem by genetically modifying the grain, thus enabling the actual edible grain to accumulate provitamin A ("The Golden Rice Project").
Genetically modifying organisms is far from a recent undertaking. Guiding and reshaping animals and plants to make them more desirable, has been a facet of humanity for more than 14,000 years (Kingsbury). The very act that changed human race forever, our transition from hunter-gatherers to farmers and herders, was a form of gene manipulation. Domestication of plants and animals is the simplest form of controlled reshaping of an organism’s genes, through artificial selection. That means that individuals that had similar traits were bred together to propagate and emphasize desired characteristics. However, genetic engineering as in the direct manipulation of an organism using biotechnology, was first attained by Herbert Boyer and Stanley Cohen in 1973 (Arnold). All they did was insert a gene into a bacterium, to make it resistant to a particular antibiotic. Little did they know that their microscopic act would instigate the whole controversy-engulfed issue of GMOs or genetically modified organisms (Genome News
Science and technology are rapidly advancing everyday; in some ways for the better, and in some, for worse. One extremely controversial advance is genetic engineering. As this technology has high potential to do great things, I believe the power genetic engineering is growing out of control. Although society wants to see this concept used to fight disease and illness, enhance people 's lives, and make agriculture more sustainable, there needs to be a point where a line is drawn.
Gayen, D., Sarkar, S. N., Datta, S. K., & Datta, K. (2013). Comparative analysis of nutritional compositions of transgenic high iron rice with its non-transgenic counterpart. Food chemistry, 138(2), 835-840.
...ed. Thus, the problem of food shortages in third world countries can be solved by modifying plant genes that positively affect the quality of life of many people.
Thesis: Genetically modified organisms have the potential to benefit the field of agriculture as they are continuing to make advancements that should not be hindered. GMO foods should be supported because they are safer, since they utilize fewer herbicides and pesticides, produce larger yields that can reduce world poverty, and can help fight vitamin deficiencies and malnutrition.
Throughout the course of human history, new technological advancements have always created opposing views, and conflict between the different groups that hold them. Today, one of the greatest technological controversies is over the morals and practicality of genetically modifying crops and animals. Reasons for doing so vary from making them more nutritious to making plants more bountiful to allowing organisms to benefit humans in ways never before possible. Genetic engineering is a process in which genes within the DNA of one organism are removed and placed into the DNA of another, a “…reshuffling of genes…from one species to another” (Steinbrecher qtd. in Epstein). However, uncertainty about the practice has resulted in several groups who argue for its future. Some believe that genetic engineering should be encouraged to its greatest potential, others argue that the cons of genetic engineering greatly outweigh any benefits and feel it should be entirely banned, while a final group feels genetic engineering should be continued but only under much more strict moderation and regulation.
According to scientists, genetically engineering crops contributes to their quality. Crops that have been genetically modified to have a particular trait can decrease the amount of herbicides needed for growing that crop. Additionally, genetically modified (GM) crops can help third world countries, where malnutrition is common. For example, to help diminish nutrient deficiencies in developing countries, “plans were underway to develop a golden rice that also has increased iron content”(Whitman 2). In addition, GM crops can be modified to be able to “withstand the environmental challenges of drought, disease, and insect infestation” (Swenson 1). Growing GM crops can also result in fruits and vegetables that stay fresh for a prolonged period of time and taste better.
The world has changed in various ways as humans discover technological and biological advances through the concept of modification. Ever since the beginning of time, people have been modifying the original to better suit the human nature. More specifically, scientists have come up with a method to directly manipulate the DNA of an organism to yield a more favourable characteristic. According to the University of California, the outcome of this manipulation is known to be a genetically modified organism. In reference to Natural Revolution (2014), people often assume that the nature of genetically modified organisms, GMOs, are negative and harmful to the body however, many of the uses these days are rather productive
The Washington Post states that GMOS can make orange trees become resistant to citrus greening, and they can add vitamins, healthful oils and omega-3 yeast. A GMO cow has became resistant to a sleeping sickness and it can no longer pass the disease to humans. Dr. Jennifer Thomson, geneticist at Cambridge and author of Food for Africa: The Life and Work of A Scientist in GM Crops talks about Golden Rice, GMO rice that contains vitamin A. Golden Rice contains beta-carotene, which is converted into vitamin A in humans. According to the World Health Organization, nearly 500,000 children become blind every year due to vitamin A deficiency. Half of these children die within a year of going blind. Golden Rice is an effective solution and it has already been implemented in third world countries such as Bangladesh and the Phillippines, where some kids have been getting over 70% more vitamin A intake. Golden rice helps keep people in third world countries healthy. Researchers are also working on an apple that could vaccinate children against a virus that is the leading cause of
Researchers at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Institute for plant sciences have created a strain of ‘golden rice’ containing an unusually high content of beta-carotene a vitamin A.
GMO food can create healthy, nutritious food in greater quantities for the less fortunate. For example, Hadiya is a toddler, born to poor African farmers. Her eyes are a milky white. Blinded from birth because of a cataract caused by vitamin A deficiency in her diet, she will never see her parents, and it is likely that she won’t survive past five years old. This is sadly the case for thousands of African and South-East Asian children, just because they have a vitamin deficiency in their diet. Vitamin A is supplied by
The growing population worldwide posts many issues, problems and challenges. One of the problems that the society is facing is the unavailability of food supply. Rice being the staple food served on the table of Asian and other people is already scare that sometimes, other people may not eat rice anymore due to its high cost and the production of this commodity is declining. It is a must to implement or adopt better strategies to increase the production of rice if not, many people will be suffering from starvation.
We live in a world that is constantly changing and advancing thanks to technological advancements, especially in the field of molecular genetics. Today, we are discovering and implementing new ways to overcome the ill-fated symptoms developed as a result from poor health or accidents. We are also making advancements in the field of agriculture thanks to molecular genetics. As we all know, food is an essential entity in our lives and is abundant as well as relatively easy to obtain here in the United States. However, as good as it may sound, this is not necessarily true for developing countries. Many people in developing countries receive very little food, if any, due to its scarcity. It is estimated that in Asia alone, close to 800 million people go to bed hungry every night due to food shortage. This problem can be alleviated by turning to the production of genetically modified organisms (a.k.a. GMOs).
Genetically modified foods can be a great boon to civilization, but only if given the chance. Much like the creature became more sympathetic as he told his tale, GMOs need the chance to tell theirs. A prime example would be the Golden Rice Project. Rice was modified to contain vitamin A, a vitamin not traditionally found in grain crops like rice (Key). The deficiency of vitamin A is prevalent in countries in which rice is the stable crop, and it causes the death of two million children annually and results in blindness for many of the survivors (Key). A serving of Golden Rice provides fifty percent of the necessary vitamin A for children, thus effectively combating this form of malnutrition (Key). If more knew accounts such as this about GMOs’ capacity for good, then there would greater
Genetically modified (GM) foods have become omnipresent over the past decade. They are a technological breakthrough that allows humans to manipulate and add foreign genes to crops to enhance desired traits, but they have also evolved into a controversial issue, especially for Third World countries. Some people believe that GM foods not only provide larger yields to feed hungry citizens in Third World countries, but they can also be a source of great nutritional value. For example, researchers have developed a strain of golden rice containing high amounts of vitamin A and numerous other vitamins and minerals. Additionally, GM crops are laced with herbicides and pesticides, and therefore reduce the need for chemical consumption. Opponents of GM foods claim that they pose a threat to the health of consumers and that these crops could eventually cross-pollinate in an unregulated fashion or lead to the growth of superweeds and superbugs resistant to the herbicides and pesticides woven into the genetic fiber of the crops. Developed nations should promote research and monitoring from an ethical point of view and financial assistance through philanthropic ventures in order to limit environmental and health risks. They should also make sure that limited cultural displacement will result from the introduction of GM crops and that instead, a better livelihood and well-being through collaboration will emerge. Hence, GM crops should be introduced only provided that the developed nations assume the ethical and financial responsibilities for the environmental, health, and social consequences that attend this new innovation.
Golden rice: Was created by Inro Protrykys. He wanted to eliminate the deficiency of vitamin A in rural areas and under developed countries and areas. The idea was to create a production of beta-carotene., which is mainly found in gold rice plants. Beta-carotene is one of the main sources of vitamin A. By adding only two genes, a plant phytoene synthase and a bacterial phytoene desaturase, the pathway is turned back on and β-carotene consequently accumulates in the grain. This allows for more vitamin A to be present in the rice and thus bettering the amount of nutrients one will get from Golden Rice. (The Science of Golden Rice, Golden Rice Project, 23 April 2014, http://www.goldenrice.org/Content2-How/how1_sci.php)