User:Bahner.matthew/sandbox

Although examples of genetic manipulation can be found all throughout history, the first modern applications of transgenic plant modification arose in the 1980's. In 1983, the first successful transgenic plant was created, in which a tobacco plant was modified in order to resist anti-biotics. Once it was discovered that DNA could be transferred between two distinct plant species, the presence of genetic modification began to drastically increase. Monsanto, currently the worlds largest seed producer, was involved mainly in the production of herbicides known as "Agent Orange" and "Roundup" when genetic plant modification was first discovered. In 1996 they introduced their first transgenetically modified crops, "Roundup Ready Soybeans" and "Bt Cotton", which acted as herbicide and insect resistant crops respectively. Transgenesis is commonly used in the genetic modification of plant species for the purpose of making the organism "as useful and productive as possible". Additionally, Transgenesis allows breeders "the ability to use genes from other organisms to increase the amount of genetic variability"," beyond that accessible by conventional breeding methods . Transgenic plant modification targets the nucleus of the organism, where the genes are inserted by the biolistic method (Particle gun method) or by Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation". Biolistic processes are used mainly for the creation of modified corn and rice. In this highly technical process, selected DNA particles are bound to either particles of Gold or Tungsten and "shot into plant tissue or single plant cells, under high pressure". The DNA particles are now able to break through the tough cell wall of the plant nucleus and completely integrate with the original DNA contained in the organism. . The the Agrobacterium method, a bacteria originating from soil known as Agrobacterium tumefaciens is used to infect plant cells. The bacterium is transferred into the plant chromosome through a Ti plasmid that contains a "region of Transfer" where scientists can more easily insert gene traits. Because the Agrobacterium method uses actual natural processes to obtain transgenic modification, many see it as being much more acceptable than the biolistic process. . As a result of both of these transgenic modification methods, plant organisms are able to receive traits that target a specific desired enhancement. Plant Transgenesis has made changes like "improving shelf life, higher yield, improved quality, pest resistance, tolerance to heat, cold and drought resistance, against a variety of biotic and abiotic stresses". The task of inserting a transgene into a plant is much more challenging than animal trangenesis, mainly because plants contain a strong cell wall that must be penetrated for gene insertion. The use of transgenic biotechnology has been slowly growing since it was first performed in 1986. "As of 2001, 75 percent of all food crops grown in the United States were genetically modified, including 80 percent of soybeans,68 percent of cotton, and 26 percent of corn crops". Transgenic soybeans are the most common genetically modified crop that is grown in the U.S today. One of the most commonly acquired modifications is a transgenic insecticide resistance that is made through the genes of Bacillus Thuringiensi. This is a very commmon soil bacteria that "produce proteins that are toxic to certain groups of insects that feed on them". Although strains of Bt cotton, Bt Corn, and Bt potatoes have all been created in the past, only the corn and cotton varieties are presently harvested From a span of 1997 to 2014, U.S acreage used of herbicide resistant soybean growth rose from 17 percent to an impressive 94 percent. . In addition to these herbicide resistant soy bean plants,other crops including corn, cotton, canola, sugar beet, and flax are also commonly modified by transgenesis to attain a desired quality. Although many crops are transgenetically modified in order to illicit certain resistances or tolerances, there are also many other modifications that are commonly made. Transgenic tomatoes for example, have been modified primarily to maintain and even enhance its flavor and ripening time. In the past tomatoes had to be picked far prior to being ripe, and then gassed with ethylene in order to induce an artificial ripening process. In order to combat against this dilemma, scientists developed a method of transgenic modification that combined ecoli and a gene from the tomato to produce an organism that would last longer against normal necrosis, and not require artificial ripening with chemicals. Following the creation of these genetically modified tomatoes, many other problem species were similarly modified. Potato, Squash and Papaya have also been introduced with transgene genomes in order to kill off harmful viruses easier, and prevent subsequent rotting. In all of these crop species, Transgenesis is the most common form of genetic modification that is used to acquire the desired trait. There are currently six major corporations that use transgenesis modification for genetically modified seeds and pesticide protection. These companies include Monsanto, BASF, Bayer, Dow, DuPont and Syngenta and together, are known as "The Big Six". In 2009 alone, these six corporations accounted for a combined transgenic seed and biotech sale of nearly 16 million U.S dollars. In 1995, the top ten agribusiness companies only "controlled 37% of the worlds commercial seed sales. Today the top ten companies account for 73% of the commercial transgenic seed market . Among the companies performing transgenic plant modification as a method of crop engineering, certain controversies and debate have arisen between these large corporations and small scale farmers. From the perspective of large corporations like Monsanto, for example, their primary goal in transgenic modification is to "empower farmers" by allowing crop security and increased yields . The other side of this debate can be represented by the cotton farmers of India, where approximately 95% of farmers use the engineered Bt cotton seeds of Monsanto .Since the seeds were introduced to central Indian farmers in the 1990's, many cotton farmers have experienced results that were unexpected. Farmers claim that with the use of these seeds "expenses on chemical fertilizers and pesticides soared" and that "the price of cotton is too low to make any profit". This specific instance helps to illustrate the two distinct perspectives on Transgenic plant modification that apply to the global population of transgenic farming.