"gene" news and stories

Genetically modified foodstuffs do not have a very good public relations team working for them. Hearing that food has been genetically modified in some way will turn off most consumers because the assumption associated with it is that the food has been made more pest/disease resistant and less flavorful through unnatural means. Unnatural, in this instance, refers to a quickly forced change in a particular plant and not to a gradual evolution through selective breeding. The word does not have a positive connotation, yet in spite of that, not everything done with GM foods is a bad idea.

The US Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (USDA ARS) is currently working with a gene that "induce high levels of beta-carotene into food crops." The gene, named Or is responsible for the orange color of some cauliflower and "promotes high beta-carotene accumulation in various plant tissues." Beta-carotene, is processed by the body into Vitamin A, so an increase of its concentration in foods that are naturally low in it could make a significant impact on worldwide Vitamin A deficiencies, which affects approximately 250 million children worldwide. More studies (there have only been eight years' worth) are needed before any action is taken.

This isn't to say that GM foods are necessarily a good idea, but it does show that there are applications beyond inserting jellyfish genes to make food glow.

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