Gene Technology/ Genetic Engineering-3


 Applications of Genetic Technology

  • Genetic engineering is used by scientists to enhance or modify the characteristics of an individual organism. It can be applied to any organism, from a virus to a sheep. For example, genetic engineering can be used to produce plants that have a higher nutritional value or can tolerate exposure to herbicides.

    • Food security: The Green Revolution succeeded in tripling the food supply but yet it was not enough to feed the growing human population. Use of genetically modified crops is a possible solution. 

      • The understanding of genetics could enable farmers to obtain maximum yield from their fields and to minimise the use of fertilisers and chemicals so that their harmful effects on the environment.

    • Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO): Plants, bacteria, fungi and animals whose genes have been altered by manipulation are called Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). GM plants have been useful in many ways:

      • It makes crops more tolerant to abiotic stresses (cold, drought, salt, heat)

      • It reduces reliance on chemical pesticides (pest-resistant crops)

      • It helps to reduce post harvest losses

      • It increases efficiency of mineral usage by plants (this prevents early exhaustion of fertility of soil)

      • It enhances nutritional value of food, e.g., Vitamin ‘A’ enriched rice

  • Bt toxin gene: It has been cloned from the bacteria and been expressed in plants to provide resistance to insects without the need for insecticides; in effect created a bio-pesticide. 

    • It could decrease the amount of pesticide used. Bt toxin is produced by a bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt for short). 

    • Some strains of Bacillus thuringiensis produce proteins that kill certain insects such as lepidopterans (tobacco budworm, armyworm), coleopterans (beetles) and dipterans (flies, mosquitoes). 

  • Genetically modified insulin: Normally insulin is produced in the pancreas, but in people with type 1 diabetes, there is a problem with insulin production.

    • People with diabetes therefore have to inject insulin to control their blood sugar levels.

    • Genetic engineering has been used to produce a type of insulin, very similar to our own, from yeast and bacteria like E. coli. 

    • This genetically modified insulin, ‘Humulin’ was licensed for human use in 1982. 

  • Disease treatment: Recombinant DNA technology has contributed to health care in two important ways: 

    • Production of pharmaceutically important proteins (biopharmaceuticals) and gene therapy for replacement of defective genes.

    • The technology has been effectively used to produce various human proteins in microorganisms, such as insulin and growth hormone, used in the treatment of diseases.

  • Fermentation: It has been widely used to improve strains. For example, in brewing yeast, it has been advantageous in the improvement of fermentation and post-fermentation stages in beer production.

  • Cost–effective vaccines: It has made possible the construction of safer and more cost–effective vaccines since only the desired antigen instead of the entire pathogen is used. 

    • DNA vaccination involves the direct inoculation, into the animal, of an antigen-encoding bacterial plasmid to elicit the immune response.

Impact of Genetic Technologies

  • Environmental impact:

    • Ecological imbalance: The release of a new genetically engineered species would also have the possibility of causing an imbalance in the ecology of a region just like the exotic species do. 

      • An accident or an unknown result could cause several problems. An accident in engineering the genetics of a virus or bacteria could result in a stronger type, which could cause a serious epidemic when released.

  • Health impact on human:

    • Positive impact: The production of medicines through the use of genetically altered organisms has generally been welcomed.

      • The technological processes have made immense impact in the area of healthcare by enabling mass production of safe and more effective therapeutic drugs. 

      • Various human proteins in microorganisms, such as insulin and growth hormone, used in the treatment of diseases.

      • The application of the genetic manipulation methods has been exploited successfully for development of a vaccine against hepatitis B virus (HBV) that is now widely used.

    • Negative impact: Looking at the fact that genetic engineering employs viral vectors that carry functional genes inside the human body. The repercussions are still unknown but the population as a whole will be susceptible to viruses or any form of diseases.

  • Certain changes in a plant or animal could cause unpredicted allergic reactions in some people which, in its original form, did not occur. Other changes could result in the toxicity of an organism to humans or other organisms.

  • Antibiotic-resistance: The presence of antibiotic-resistance genes in foods could have lethal effects. Therefore, eating these foods could reduce the effectiveness of antibiotics to fight disease when these antibiotics are taken with meals. 

    • It could aggravate the already serious health problem of antibiotic resistant disease organisms.

  • Ethical and social issues: Several issues have also been raised as regards the acceptance of this technology.

    • Playing god:  It refers to the powers that science, engineering, and technology confer on human beings to understand and to control the natural world. It has become a strong argument against genetic engineering.

      • One major concern is that once an altered gene is placed in an organism, the process cannot be reversed. 

  • Biological weaponry: Terrorist groups or armies could develop more powerful biological weaponry. These weapons could be resistant to medicines, or even targeted at people who carry certain genes. 

    • Genetically engineered organisms used for biological weapons might also reproduce faster, which would create larger quantities in shorter periods of time, increasing the level of devastation.

Regulation of GMOs in India

  • India has a systematic and structured regulatory framework for biosafety evaluation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and products thereof. 

    • India was one of the early movers in development of a biosafety regulatory system for GMOs, way back in 1989.

    • The GMOs and the products are regulated under the Rules for the manufacture, use, import, export & storage of hazardous microorganisms, genetically engineered organisms or cells, 1989.

    • The apex rules for regulation of all activities related to GMOs are notified under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. 

    • The rules are implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) jointly with the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science & Technology and state governments.

  • Bt cotton is the only Genetically Modified (GM) crop that is allowed in India. It has alien genes from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that allows the crop to develop a protein toxic to the common pest pink bollworm.

  • The Indian Government has set up organisations such as GEAC (Genetic Engineering Approval Committee), which will make decisions regarding the validity of GM research and the safety of introducing GM-organisms for public services.

Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC)

  • The GEAC functions under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC). 

    • As per Rules, 1989, it is responsible for appraisal of activities involving large scale use of hazardous microorganisms and recombinants in research and industrial production from the environmental angle. 

  • Responsibilities:The committee is also responsible for appraisal of proposals relating to release of genetically engineered (GE) organisms and products into the environment including experimental field trials.

  • GEAC is chaired by the Special Secretary/Additional Secretary of MoEF&CC and co-chaired by a representative from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT).

    • Members: Representative of concerned Agencies and Departments, namely, Ministry of Industrial Development, Department of Biotechnology and the Department of Atomic Energy.

Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB)

  • The CPB is a legally binding (to those countries that have ratified it), international agreement, supplemental to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). CPB was adopted on 29 January 2000 and entered into force on 11 September 2003.

    • The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) entered into force on 29 December 1993. It has 3 main objectives:

      1. The conservation of biological diversity

      2. The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity

      3. The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources

  • Objective: 

    • It aims to protect the world’s biological diversity from the potential risks associated with the transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms (LMOs), that result from modern biotechnology. 

    • It focuses on potential environmental impacts and does not address food safety issues directly - although potential risks to human health may be taken into account. Currently, 170 countries are party to the Protocol.

    • The CPB focuses on the transboundary movements, i.e. imports and exports, of LMOs to ensure the countries involved have access to the information needed for making informed decisions about the use of LMOs. 

  • India is a signatory to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB).

 Way Forward

  • Despite all of these current concerns, the potential for genetic engineering is tremendous. However, further testing and research will be required to educate society on the pros and cons of genetic engineering.

  • There is no doubt that this technology will continue to present intriguing and difficult challenges for 21st century scientists and ethicists, and education and meaningful, respectful discourse are just the starting point of what is required to tackle such complex ethical issues.

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