Section outline

  • Three cheeseburgers with bacon, displayed on a wooden surface, with condiments nearby.

    Have you ever eaten genetically engineered foods?
    ::你吃过基因改造食品吗?

    Most likely, yes. The majority of the corn in the United States is genetically engineered. Corn syrup is used to sweeten many things, like soft drinks. Corn is also fed to the cows that provided this hamburger.
    ::很可能,是的。美国大部分玉米都是基因改造的。玉米糖浆用来甜化许多东西,比如软饮料。玉米也喂养给提供这个汉堡的奶牛。

    Biotechnology in Agriculture
    ::农业生物技术

    Biotechnology is changing the genetic makeup of living things to make a useful product. Biotechnology has led scientists to develop useful applications in agriculture and food science . These include the development of transgenic crops. In transgenic crops , genes are placed into plants to give the crop a beneficial trait. Benefits include:
    ::生物技术正在改变生物的基因构成,以产生有用的产品。生物技术已经使科学家在农业和食品科学方面开发了有用的应用,其中包括发展转基因作物。在转基因作物中,基因被植入植物,使作物具有有益的特性。

    • Improved yield from crops.
      ::作物产量提高。
    • Increased resistance of crops to environmental stresses.
      ::作物对环境压力的抗药性增加。
    • Increased nutritional qualities of food crops.
      ::提高粮食作物的营养质量。
    • Improved taste , texture or appearance of food.
      ::改善食物的味道、质地或外观。
    • Reduced dependence on fertilizers, insecticides , and other chemicals.
      ::减少对化肥、杀虫剂和其他化学品的依赖。

    Crops are obviously dependent on environmental conditions. Drought can destroy crop yields, as can too much rain and floods. But what if crops could be developed to withstand these harsh conditions?
    ::干旱会破坏作物产量,以及太多的雨水和洪水。 但如果能发展作物来抵御这些恶劣条件,又会怎样?

    Biotechnology will allow the development of crops containing genes that will help them to withstand harsh conditions. For example, drought and salty soil are two significant factors affecting how well crops grow. But there are crops that can withstand these harsh conditions. Why? Probably because of that plant's genetics . So scientists are studying plants that can cope with these extreme conditions. They hope to identify and isolate the genes that control these beneficial traits. The genes could then be transferred into more desirable crops, with the hope of producing the same traits in those crops.
    ::生物技术将允许开发含有基因的作物,这些基因将帮助他们抵御恶劣条件。例如,干旱和盐土是影响作物生长状况的两个重要因素。但有些作物可以承受这些恶劣条件。为什么?可能是因为植物的遗传学。所以科学家们正在研究能够应付这些极端条件的植物。他们希望识别和分离控制这些有利特性的基因。然后基因可以转移到更理想的作物中,希望在这些作物中产生同样的特性。

    Thale cress ( Figure ), a species of Arabidopsis ( Arabidopsis thaliana ), is a tiny weed that has been extensively studied. It is often used for plant research because it is very easy to grow, and its has been mapped. Scientists have identified a gene from this plant, At-DBF2, that gives the plant resistance to some environmental stresses. When this gene is inserted into tomato and tobacco cells , the cells were able to withstand environmental stresses like salt, drought, cold, and heat far better than ordinary cells. If these results prove successful in larger trials, then At-DBF2 genes could help in engineering crops that can better withstand harsh environments.
    ::Thale cress (Figure ) (Figure ) (Arabidopsis thaliana ) 是一种小杂草,已经广泛研究过。它经常用于植物研究,因为它非常容易生长,而且已经绘制过。科学家已经从这个植物中找出了一个基因,At-DBF2, 使植物对环境压力产生抗药性。当这种基因被插入番茄和烟草细胞时,这些细胞能够经受住像盐、干旱、寒冷和热等环境压力,比普通细胞要好得多。如果这些结果在更大的试验中证明是成功的,那么At-DBF2的基因可以帮助工程作物更好地承受严酷的环境。

    Thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana) plant growing in soil among other vegetation.

    Thale cress ( Arabidopsis thaliana ).
    ::Thales cress(阿拉伯赛亚拉那)。

    Summary
    ::摘要

    • Genetic alteration can be used to change many different phenotypes of plants.
      ::基因改变可以用来改变许多不同的植物的苯型。
    • Transgenic crops have extra genes that were placed into them to give the crop a beneficial trait.
      ::转基因作物具有额外的基因,这些基因被放入其中,使作物具有有利的特性。
    • In the future, crops may be genetically altered to withstand harsh conditions.
      ::今后,作物可能会转基因,以承受恶劣条件。

    Explore More
    ::探索更多

    Use the resource below to answer the questions that follow.
    ::利用以下资源回答以下问题。

    • How Do You Disable A Gene at (6:19)
      ::您如何在 (6: 19) 时禁用 Gen ?
    1. What approach do scientists use to disable genes in Arabidopsis ? How does this work?
      ::科学家用什么方法来使阿拉伯比多斯的基因丧失功能?这如何运作?
    2. What do scientists use to insert DNA into Arabidopsis ?
      ::科学家用什么方法将DNA插入阿拉伯比目动物体内?
    3. Can scientists insert whole genes into a plant's genome?
      ::科学家能把整个基因 插入植物基因组吗?
    4. How are the Araidopsis mutants valuable to botanists in general?
      ::亚雷多普斯变种人对于植物学家来说 究竟有什么价值呢?

    Review
    ::回顾

    1. What is a transgenic plant?
      ::什么是转基因植物?
    2. What are three examples of how biotechnology might be used in agriculture?
      ::生物技术如何用于农业的三个例子是什么?