Worsham 1

Trentin Worsham
Mrs. Stemen
BioTech
3 February 2015
Research Paper
GMOs, otherwise known as genetically modified organisms, have come into the spotlight
as of recent, sparking debate on whether or not they are safe to create or eat. Some believe that
they are too risky to create and grow; others believe that they are necessary to feed the rapidly
growing population. Despite the fact that there are risks in genetically modifying the organisms,
the processes that can happen in the organism after it is modified, and the growing of these
organisms, they are relatively safe, and arguably essential to our modern world.
Firstly, to understand why there is so much controversy, one needs to know what a GMO
really is. A GMO is an organism that has been genetically modified by humans. This means that
humans have inserted the gene of another organism into this organisms genetic code, giving it
different traits than the original organism. This means that we can create crops that need less
water, grow faster, have larger yields, are more resistant to heat or cold, and many other useful
traits that will increase the overall harvest. However, people believe that plants can cross breed,
giving these traits to other plants, such as weeds. People fear that this will start new breeds of
super weeds that can spread even to areas not using GMOs, and take root even outside of
fields.
How exactly is an organism genetically modified? First, the gene that caused the desired
trait has to be found, without it, theres nothing to add to the plants genetic material. After the
appropriate gene has been found, the processes of adding it to the plant branch out. Some

Worsham 2
companies and laboratories use a special bacterium, which tricks the plant into producing the
correct proteins to produce the desired trait. Other companies and laboratories cover an
extremely small particle of metal in the DNA, and fire it into the plant or seed. This has to be
done to a large number of organisms, as any mistakes could cause unwanted side effects or traits
that would make the organism unsellable or undesirable to grow. Once any unsuitable plants or
seeds have been weeded out, the acceptable plants are further tested in green houses before being
planted very carefully in fields. The exact locations of the plants, or seeds, need to be
remembered, as to observe it as it grows. If the plant grows and acts as it was expected to, the
seeds from that plant will most likely be replanted for the next season, or taken to be used in
genetically modifying other plants.
When an organism is genetically modified, the organisms DNA is altered. Adding new
sections into the DNA causes different proteins to be created, which causes different traits in the
plant. When a cell is in need of a protein, or proteins, the nucleus of the cell takes a specific
section the DNA and translates it into RNA, or ribonucleic acid. Although there are multiple
kinds of RNA, mRNA (messenger RNA) is what is read by ribosomes to know what protein to
create. The ribosomes then use tRNA (transport RNA), which carries different amino acids, to
piece together the protein. Once the protein has been created, the cell can use it as it sees fit. This
is a very rough overview of how protein synthesis works.
The above paragraph was a very rough, basic explanation of protein synthesis. To
elaborate, there are 4 bases in DNA which indirectly tell ribosomes which protein to create.
These are: Adenine, Thymine, Cytosine and Guanine. However, mRNA has no access to
Thymine, and uses Uracil instead. Adenine always pairs with Thymine, and Cytosine always
pairs with Guanine; because Uracil replaces Thymine in mRNA, Uracil also bonds with Adenine.

Worsham 3
A strand of DNA is made up of 3 letter codons. These codons come into play when creating
mRNA, and later, proteins. When a cell needs a protein, the nucleus takes a very specific section
of DNA and translates it into mRNA. A strand of mRNA is one sided, made up of 3 letter codons.
When this strand of mRNA is in a ribosome, the anticodons appear on individual pieces of
tRNA. Attached to this tRNA is a specific amino acid, and as more and more strands of tRNA
attach to their codons, these amino acids are linked together to form a protein. By altering the
DNA in an organism, the proteins that the organism creates are directly altered, and as so, the
traits expressed by the organism.
GMOs, despite the potential risk of creating and growing them, are safe. When they are
created, they are tested very carefully as to make sure there are no problems with the plant, and
they are also watched very carefully in fields as to observe if they grow correctly. The products
harvested from these plants are also tested rigorously by the FDA, and are not allowed onto the
market until they are certain that the product is safe to consume. The FDA tests the foods even
more that they would a normal crop. They test to see if these products are potentially toxic or
allergens, for their nutritional value, and for any other traits that could potentially harm a person
or cause them to get sick. GMOs have also not shown any long term health effects in any
reputable studies throughout the years. There are many websites claiming that GMOs are
dangerous, however, a majority of these sites are in no way reputable, and cannot be taken
seriously. GMOs, in addition to being rigorously tested for safety, are also superior to traditional
crops, with few dangers. As mentioned before, people fear new breeds of super weeds,
however, there are easy methods to dealing with such weeds were they even able to be created.
Herbicides may not be an option, as many GMOs are created with a resistance to herbicides and

Worsham 4
as so the weeds would too, but manually pulling and killing weeds will always be, however
inefficient it may be, a method of destroying such weeds.
Despite the fears people have over super weeds being created, its actually impossible
for their creation. People believe that the GMO crops will cross breed with weeds to create
super weeds, however, two plants cannot cross breed if they are unrelated. As so, the only way
for a super weed to be created is through the process of natural selection over a long period of
time. If a weed survives a certain herbicide and goes on the reproduce, then its offspring will also
be resistant to the same herbicide, however, its unlikely that they will be resistant to other
herbicides. This means that unless we completely stop manufacturing new herbicides, there
should never be a weed completely resistant to all herbicides.
There are undoubtedly going to be problems with GMOs in the future, however, with all
the benefits to be gained from genetically modified crops, and the few dangers of doing so, they
are relatively safe for the world, and are no doubt the future for feeding the worlds rapidly
growing population.

Worsham 5
Works Cited
"Fact Sheet: Pros vs Cons." <i>Fact Sheet: Pros vs Cons</i>. Web. 6 Feb. 2015.
&lt;http://www.geneticallymodifiedfoods.co.uk/fact-sheet-pros-vs-cons.html&gt;.
Feature, Amy. "The Truth About GMOs: Are They Safe? What Do We Know?" WebMD.
WebMD. Web. 6 Feb. 2015. <http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/truth-aboutgmos>.
"How Do Genes Direct the Production of Proteins?" <i>Genetics Home Reference</i>. Web. 6
Feb. 2015. &lt;http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/handbook/howgeneswork/makingprotein&gt;.
"How To Genetically Modify a Seed, Step By Step." <i>Popular Science</i>. Web. 6 Feb. 2015.
&lt;http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-01/life-cycle-genetically-modifiedseed&gt;.
"U.S. Food and Drug Administration." <i>Questions & Answers on Food from Genetically
Engineered Plants</i>. Web. k6 Feb. 2015.
&lt;http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodScienceResearch/Biotechnology/ucm346030.htm&gt;.