REFERENCES are available on the web: “GMO Myths and
Truths” and “Physicians and Scientists
for Responsible Application of Science and Technology”.
Making GMO's consists of 3 main steps:
1.
First, genetic material from various organisms
is isolated, cut and rejoined with viruses or bacteria as “gene carriers”
because viruses and bacteria are very good at getting into cells.
2.
This new “recombinant DNA” is stitched with
antibiotic “marker genes” to make it easy to identify which cells have taken up
the foreign genetic material and survived.
3.
The vectors inside the cells that have survived
are then mechanically injected into the target organism using a fine glass
pipette in the case of animal embryos, or fired into the cells of plants using
a “gene gun”.
This process is imprecise and unpredictable. It is based on
an obsolete understanding of genetics. Recent findings show there are no simple
one-to-one relationships between genes and traits, but that the expression of a
gene is the result of its interaction within the whole organism.
So using viruses and bacteria stitched with antibiotic to
insert a cold-resistance fish gene into a plant can have disastrous results,
such as creating new disease-causing viruses and bacteria, and spreading
antibiotic resistance genes to the pathogens to make the diseases untreatable.
Next week: Who makes GMO's and why?
Questions? beesafemonashees@gmail.org
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