Biotechnology has been practiced by man since plants and animals were first domesticated thousands of years ago. Biotechnology in its most simplistic sense is the genetic modification of living organisms. Hence, all crop varieties grown today, including soybean, have had their DNA manipulated—the essence of biotechnology. More recently, biotechnology implies a deliberate manipulation of the DNA...

India is a signatory to the Cartagena Protocol 2 – this international Convention, though primarily focusing on transboundary movement of living modified organisms [LMOs, also popularly referred to as GMOs – Genetically Modified Organisms including GM crops], emphasizes a precautionary approach towards LMOs. The Convention is about ‘ensuring adequate levels of protection in the field, of the saf...

Innate immunity plays an important role in pulmonary host defense against Pneumocystis carinii, an important pathogen in individuals with impaired cell-mediated immunity. We investigated the role of GM-CSF in host defense in a model of P. carinii pneumonia induced by intratracheal inoculation of CD4-depleted mice. Lung GM-CSF levels increased progressively during the infection and were signific...

Efforts to design genetically modified (GM) crops have focused on minimizing the amount of foreign DNA present in the genome. One reason for this development is to address consumer concerns about unforeseeable effects of either the transgenes or the technology used to introduce them into plant genomes. The latter risk has not been completely assessed, but the former can be dealt with both by mi...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been widely demonstrated to play fundamental roles in gene regulation in most eukaryotes. To date, there has been no study describing the miRNA composition in genetically modified organisms (GMOs). In this study, small RNAs from dry seeds of two GM soybean lines and their parental cultivars were investigated using deep sequencing technology and bioinformatic approaches. ...

In recent years scientific literature has seen an increase in publications describing new transgenic applications. Although technically-sound, these promising developments might not necessarily translate into products available to the consumer. This article highlights the impact of external factors on the commercial viability of Genetically Modified (GM) animals in the pharmaceutical and food s...

We assessed the effects of cultivating two genetically modified (GM) glyphosate-tolerant soybean varieties (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) derived from Event 40-3-2 and a Japanese conventional variety on arthropods under field conditions, with weed control using glyphosate and conventional weed control for two years. Plant height and dry weight of the conventional variety were significantly larger tha...

Genetic modification (GM) has been called “the new biotechnology” and has been hailed as a leading enabling technology, facilitating major innovation in health care, as well as in the chemical, agricultural and food sectors. GM techniques facilitate the combination of DNA which would not occur naturally and, although there are no records of disease or accidents associated with GM work, potentia...