Biotechnology

Biotechnology

• Any process that uses our understanding of living things to create a product

Genetic Engineering

The process of making changes in the DNA code of living organisms

Genetic engineering can be accomplished through transformation.

Transformation is when a cell takes in DNA from outside the cell. This DNA becomes part of the cell’s DNA.

This can be accomplished with the help of bacteria.

Bacterial Transformation

The changing of one strain of bacteria into another strain

Plasmid: a circular piece of DNA found in bacteria

F+ bacterium contains a plasmid

F- bacterium does not contain a plasmid

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

1-Remove the plasmid from the bacterium.

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

2-Isolate the gene of interest.

A gene of interest is a piece of DNA that codes for a protein we want more of

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

3-Open the plasmid by cutting it with a restriction enzyme

This leaves “sticky ends”

Which need to be the complement of the sticky ends left on the DNA fragment you want to insert.

Sticky Ends

Sticky EndsThe restriction enzyme EcoR1 cuts the DNA

at the sequence GAATTC, between the G and the A

Sticky Ends

Sticky Ends

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

4-Insert the gene of interest

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

5-Insert the plasmid with recombinant DNA into a new bacterium.

Recombinant DNA: DNA produced by combining DNA from different organisms

Steps of Bacterial Transformation

6-The bacteria reproduces itself and the plasmid. All descendants express the inserted gene

Bacterial Transformation

Other Types of Transformation

• Plants:

-Use bacteria that insert their plasmid into plant cells

-removing cell walls sometimes allows plant cells to take up foreign DNA on their own

Other Types of Transformation

• Animals:

-Many egg cells are large enough that DNA can be directly injected

Genetically Engineered

Products

Production of Human Insulin

• Insulin regulates the blood sugar level.

• The gene for human insulin is inserted into yeast or bacteria, from which large quantities of the human insulin are manufactured

http://publications.nigms.nih.gov/genetics/images/ch1_diagram.gif

http://www.ingenious.org.uk/media/4.0_SAC/webimages/1032/1/10321271_3.jpg

Golden Rice

• Undernourished people in poorer countries may have blindness caused by a lack of vitamin A

• Contains beta-carotene, which forms Vitamin A

http://www.jewishworldreview.com/toons/varvel/biotech.protest.gif

http://www.bairesbiotec.org.ar/images/speake1.jpg

Golden Rice• Genes for making

beta-carotene are taken from daffodils and inserted into the genome of rice

http://www.healingdaily.com/detoxification-diet/rBGH.jpg

Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone

• rBGH is a genetically engineered version of a hormone, which is found in the pituitary gland of cows and controls milk production

• rBGH can increase cows’ milk production by as much as 20-30%

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Milk_glass.jpg

Spider Silk

• Elastic, light weight fiber 5 times stronger than steel • One method involves inserting the gene from a

weaving spider into a fertilized goat egg. The resultant “spider-goat” produces milk that can be manufactured into strong fibers.

http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/motm/spider/goat.jpg

Spider Silk

• To make flak jackets, rope, textiles, sutures, artificial tendons, and bandages for burn victims

Glowing Organisms• Genes that make jellyfish glow are inserted

into other organisms • The organism glows under UV light

http://www.fluorescentpets.com/prod31.jpg

• Bt is a bacterium that is toxic to some insects. In the lab, the gene that produces the toxic effect is inserted into the DNA of plants

• Bt crops produce an insecticide protein thousands of times more powerful than the chemical spray insecticides

Bt Crops

Transgenic Organisms : Any organism whose genome incorporates and expresses genes from the same or a different species

Genetically modified products: Altering the DNA of an organism to get it to express different

traits.