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Molecular Genetics: Biotechnology 422 Views


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Description:

In this video from our course on molecular genetics, learn all about Biotechnology.


Transcript

00:00

[ whoosh ]

00:01

We speak student!

00:03

[ whoosh ]

00:07

Molecular Genetics

00:08

Biotechnology

00:10

A la Shmoop

00:13

We're talking biology with Dr. Ruth Tennen,

00:16

and we're gonna talk now about biotechnology.

00:19

So, Ruth, tell us -- give us a good definition for what we mean.

00:24

'Cause biotechnology can be, probably, many, many things.

00:26

Give us a good definition.

00:27

What is biotechnology?

00:30

So, in the case that I usually think about it,

00:33

biotechnology is using organisms like bacteria and yeast

00:36

for useful purposes other than what they normally do.

00:40

Got it. Okay, fair enough.

00:42

Give us some examples.

00:44

Like, you know, making medicine...

00:47

...talked about insulin and stuff.

00:49

- Yep. - Making crops and so on.

00:51

Give us some other areas where biotechnology

00:53

is being used today and it actually is working.

00:56

Yeah, so, definitely making genetically modified crops.

00:58

So, for example, there's something called golden rice,

01:01

which is a rice variety.

01:03

They added a gene so that - or, a series of genes -

01:05

so that it makes vitamin A.

01:06

So it makes, basically, the rice more nutritious.

01:08

So that's one thing, kind of, genetically modifying plants.

01:10

Making medicines...

01:12

[ cheering ]

01:13

Making -- You can make bacteria that might eat oil.

01:16

That would be helpful for oil spills.

01:18

There's all sorts of --

01:18

And there's huge international consortia that are, kind of, trying to figure out,

01:21

"How can we combine different interesting genes to make

01:23

bacteria do useful things for us?"

01:25

But what I know

01:26

a lot of people seem to worry about

01:28

is that when we genetically modify things

01:30

using biotechnology that we don't know what

01:33

the after effects are.

01:34

So, for example, adding vitamin A to rice.

01:37

Are we then replacing rice's resistance to some virus?

01:42

Or some other thing that it has that we don't know about

01:46

and couldn't know about until it's 400 generations

01:49

of replication down the line

01:51

and then it comes back to bite us?

01:53

[ growling ]

01:54

And there's, like, all these Hollywood movies that, you know,

01:56

you read about where it ends up in zombie land.

02:00

[ ominous music ]

02:02

So how does that work?

02:03

Like how should we think about that in a rational way,

02:05

not by journalists from the left or the right,

02:07

you know, trying to get a rating.

02:10

Is biotechnology dangerous?

02:13

In terms of unforeseen negative consequences,

02:15

there are always safety issues whenever you're

02:17

genetically manipulating things.

02:19

Usually, in the lab, there are safeguards.

02:20

So, the bacteria we manipulate in the lab would not

02:22

be able to survive outside of the lab anyway,

02:25

so that wouldn't cause a problem.

02:26

[ evil laugh ]

02:28

There's really no scientific evidence that genetically modified crops

02:32

or things like that cause real damage, so...

02:35

Then why is there so much political, you know,

02:39

blabber about all that stuff?

02:40

I think part of it is that it's kind of

02:42

just like the "yuck" factor.

02:44

It's kind of a weird thing.

02:45

People shouldn't be playing God.

02:46

They shouldn't be doing things like this.

02:47

And then there's also obviously, like,

02:49

corporate interests coming in.

02:50

[ growling ]

02:53

What would the lobby be to say,

02:54

"No, don't use biotechnology to make better rice"?

02:57

Yeah, I think it's like, sometimes small farmers

02:59

might not want to be beholden to Monstanto

03:02

to get genetically modified crops.

03:05

Things like that.

03:06

[ mooing ]

03:08

And for all you future lawyers out there,

03:10

note that there's no scientific evidence

03:13

that GMOs as a whole

03:15

damage human health or the environment.

03:18

But don't just take one expert's opinion.

03:21

Get Googling and read all about the subject

03:23

if you're interested in learning more.

03:27

[ whoop ]

03:28

What is biotechnology?

03:32

In what areas do we use biotechnology?

03:35

Is biotechnology dangerous?

03:41

[ growling ]

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