Genetically Modified Organisms (Biological & Biomedical Sciences Essay)

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Genetically Modified Organisms
Genetically modified organisms are organisms, specifically animals, plants, or microorganisms, that have undergone DNA alterations in ways that do not follow naturally by natural recombination, fertilization, or mating. The biological processes are carried out through gene technology, genetic engineering, and modern biotechnology (Bierbaum, 135). The technology involves transferring individual genes from one organism to another and can also be done between unrelated organisms. Genetically engineered crops were introduced in the U.S.A in the 1990s. Examples of the most grown produce in the United States are herbicide-tolerant and insect resistant and include soybeans, corn, and cotton.
My plants for the Week 3 Lab task are Radish and Marigold. These two crops are GMOs. Non-GMO seeds for both marigold and radish are readily available in the market. Marigold is a beautiful, flowering plant that grows annually. Heirloom is a type of marigold that grows and tolerates a broad range of soil, and hot climatic conditions are best for marigolds. Non-GMO marigold seeds germinate directly in the garden; they can be planted indoors (Bierbaum, 135). The latter guarantees reliable and generous splashes of color, such as yellow, orange, copper, and gold. These colors are great and preferred for dry and blossom arrangements. There are different varieties of marigold, ranging from small types to giant types. Marigold flowers are stunning, and the buyer is allowed to choose their colors of preference.
Figure 1.0: My week 3 lab plants (Radish and Marigold)
Non-GMO radish seeds are readily available in the market too. A good example is China Rose, which costs less than six dollars. These popular radish species-sprout yields crisp rose winter radishes. Its radishes are two inches wide, eight inches long; they have white flesh and a rose-coloured skin. China Rose species are suitable for mild climates and are planted mainly during fall. This crop is used to add a little perk and taste to sandwiches and salads. These non-GMO seeds grow quickly and rapidly in bright sunlight; they produce beautiful foliage’s. The fact that these flowers grow very fast allows the farmer to harvest more than twice annually. Non-GMO seeds are produced through cross-pollination and are cultivated in two different ways. First is through open pollination of seeds and as hybrid seeds. Hybrid, in this case, the plant varieties are produced through specific and controlled cross-pollination of different individual parent plants to yield new and better traits that are difficult to create through inbreeding the same plants (Bierbaum, 137). Hybrid seeds do not conform to known characteristics of used plant varieties.
Figure 2.0: Organic Radish sprouting seeds
Figure 3.0: Marigold flower
Open-pollinated seeds are produced when random pollination occurs through the wind, insects, birds, or any other natural means of pollination. Farmers who preserve open-pollinated crops can keep genetically pure plants in different places from other plants’ pollen grains. Gardeners can either plant the isolated grains in the following seasons as they have better characteristics from the other plants. Many seed companies preserve and sell open-pollinated seeds, mostly heirloom seeds, which have been used by many generations. It is easy to identify GMO and non-GMO seeds. GMO seeds are produced and developed mainly for large-scale commercial agricultural use and not designed for an average individual gardener. GMO seeds are also costly, and their producers keep track of planting.
Additionally, GMO seeds have patent rights, making it quite impossible to use the sources illegally. Patent rights limit the number of people who can buy and plant such seeds. I agree with the application of GMOs and their technology because there are many advantages of embracing these technologies than the disadvantages. The significant advantage is that GMO foods and crops are insect and pests’ resistance. This technology modifies crops to make them resistant to pests and other dangerous insects. Toxic bacteria are added to plants to make them resist pests and in...