Genetically modified mosquito

The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India has granted permission to the International Institute of Biotechnology and Toxicology (IIBAT), near Chennai, India to run trials on the Genetically Modified (GM) mosquito. The GM mosquito is engineered by the researchers at the Oxford University to control dengue and chikungunya. Around 55% of the world population is at risk of getting dengue and 120 countries are endemic. This technology deploys genetically sterile Aedes aegypti male mosquitoes to fight the disease- causing ones.

Genetically modified primates

Japanese researchers has created the first transgenic monkeys (marmoset) that can pass a foreign gene to the offspring. This major accomplishment is published in the May issue of Nature. This experiment has little immediate effect on the modification of human germ lines as the marmoset monkeys are evolutionarily distant from humans. However this advance will eventually lead to more sophisticated human disease models leading to inevitable attention from animal-rights activists. The transgenic marmoset do one thing different from normal monkeys, they glow as they harbor the Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) gene. Already the animal-rights activists have pitched in some emotional campaign. They fear this advance will lead to engineering marmosets that are born and live with genetic defects that will also be passed on to their progeny.

The researchers may be justified by their values, but researchers must be ready to address ethical question. A broader debate involving researchers, public and political fraternity is essential to take on the bioethical issues and to promote research. Researchers could publicly demonstrate an acute awareness of the ethical aspects of research practices and of the potential applications, like UK scientists did last year during debates over human embryo research.

GM food in India

Are Indians consuming GM (genetically modified) food without their knowledge? Recently Indian newspapers reported that maybe GM food is being imported despite ban into the country. This is made possible because of weak regulations and calls for stricter regulatory mechanisms.

 

Read more at http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20090605/1053/tnl-gm-food-slipping-into-india.html

Enzymatic Assembly of DNA in a Test Tube

Daniel Gibson and his colleagues at the J.Craig Venter Institute, USA have developed a method for assembling DNA molecules up to several hundred kilo-bases in  a test tube. Their study is published in Nature Methods 6, 343 - 345 (2009). According to the method described by them, DNA molecules are assembled in a isothermal, single-reaction process with the concerted action of a 5' -  exonuclease, a DNA polymerase and a DNA ligase. A single-step process makes it faster and fully controllable. This will further allow in vitro assembly of genes, entire genetic pathways, or even small genomes from natural or synthetic DNA.

 

 

P.S. : Daniel Gibson's group previously assembled the entire genome (583 kilo-base-pair) of Mycoplasma genitalium using synthetic DNA. The final steps of DNA assembling could be accomplished in a yeast cell and it is difficult as the foreign DNA maybe toxic to the yeast.  

Events

 

These are the few upcoming events. I hope someone finds these useful.

 

15th International Scientific Congress 2010, Cuba.

 http://www.cnic.edu.cu/15congresoingles.html

 

Advanced Laboratory Training Course: Viral Subversion of Immune Responses

Howard Hughes Medical Institue and University of Rijeka, Croatia. http://www.hhmi.org/grants/office/international/intl_courses.html

 

Science Forum 2009

Waginengen, The Netherlands.

http://www.sciencecouncil.cgiar.org/events/science-forum/en/

 

Stem Cells 2009

Abcam, Antigua.

http://www.abcam.com/index.html?pageconfig=resource&rid=11429

Gender Bias in Scientific Careers?

In a meta-analysis of peer-reviewed procedures during grant applications by researchers Rudiger Mutz, Hans-Dieter Daniel and Lutz Bornmann at the Professorship for Social Psychology and Research on higher Education at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Switzerland discovered a bias against women. They concluded that the reason for this gender bias is unknown. But, one of the factors could be that fewer women principal investigators apply for grants. Other explanation offered by them is that more men occupy high ranking positions, i.e., "decision-making positions" than women in institutions. They also discussed about the ways to avoid gender bias and their suggestion is to mask applicants gender.

Another study by Gunnel Gustafsson, Carl Jacobsson and Carolyn Glynn at the Swedish Research Council in Sweden analyzed all 17,000 grant applications to their council during 2003-05. They found little evidence for gender bias and reported that the success rate for receiving grants were roughly the same for both the genders. But still they discovered other discrepancies such as less success rates for women with fellowships to be post-docs, long term grants for prominent research environments and in nearly all types of grant in the field of medicine. The Swedish researchers ignore the reason for gender bias mentioned by their counterparts from Switzerland. These researchers attributed the low success rate for women in scientific careers to "career age" - the number of years that have passed since applicants earned their PhDs. Success rate increased with increase in career age and on an average women have less career age than men.

However, there is a widespread acknowledgment of gender bias in scientific careers. The US National Science Foundation in its review on gender differences in the careers of academic scientists, concludes: "Taken as a whole, the body of literature we reviewed provides evidence that women in academic careers are disadvantaged compared with men in similar careers. Women faculty earn less, are promoted less frequently to senior academic ranks, and publish less frequently than their male counterparts." other studies also pointed to similar problems. This suggests that it would be necessary to carry out international comparative study to reach a conclusion.

Swine flu -Influenza A (H1N1) virus

Cases of swine flu (influenza A- H1N1 virus) continue to be recorded on a daily basis. So far, 2o countries have officially reported 985 cases influenza A- H1N1 virus infection. The research started at the World Influenza Centre , Mill Hill, will be vital for understanding the structure of the virus, its origin, transmission and its potential to cause illness. Analysis done so far suggests that H1N1 is a mild strain compared to H5N1 avian flu strain. The initial indications are largely guesswork from the available genetic sequence of the virus and comparing that to what is known from the research wok on other influenza viruses. The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge will soon begin the gene sequencing of the virus and will also be monitoring any mutations or changes how virulent it is. More biological analysis is necessary to have a proper understanding about the potential H1N1 virus. Scientists have played down the concerns that the milder H1N1 virus could combine with H5N1 to form a "supervirus". Avian flu strain, H5N1 has been around for a decade without combining with normal seasonal flu virus. But scientists do agree that it is difficult to predict new pandemic strains.

 

BioMed Central has compiled a collection of recently published research articles, commentaries, reviews and editorials relating to influenza A - H1N1 virus.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/gateways/influenza

Biohacking -is it safe?

Infotech revolutions erupted from garages and the same is beginning to happen with biotechnology. Biohacking or Biopunk, is in its infancy, but the tools and knowledge to make novel organism is becoming cheaper and more widely available. A computer programmer, Meredith Patterson is trying to develop genetically altered yogurt bacteria in her San Francisco dining room lab. She built her own lab ordering jelly fish DNA and other equipments through internet. 

Biological research is expanding beyond the academic and industrial labs. "Why does all biology happen in academic and industrial labs?" - questions Mac Cowell, cofounder of DIYbio. DIYbio website claims that it is an organization that aims to help make biology a worthwhile pursuit for citizen scientists, amateur biologists and DIY biological engineers who value openness and safety.

Democratization of science is flourishing and the trend is evident in synthetic biology. With all the genetic data available publicly, now focus is on doing wet lab work. DYIbio claims that they focus on doing the wet lab work in a very public and transparent setting.

A cross-section of experts feel that the domestication of biotechnology in everyday life may be helpful in solving practical and economic problems. It will lead to an explosion of diversity of new living creatures. Biotech games may become a reality in the future. 

But what about safety? After all, some garage infotech hackers unleashed destructive computer viruses into the internet. Shouldn't we fear that garage biohackers will release actual viruses into the biosphere? Indeed, this will happen, but what's the best way to protect ourselves from malicious biotech viruses and other organisms? More regulation and government restrictions on access to biotech equipment and materials? Or do we need more robust technology? These questions are to be answered carefully by the biotech lobbyists, hobbyists and the Governments to reach a global consensus. 

Also read

http://diybio.org

http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/the_biohacking_hobbyist/

http://anarchotranshumanism.com/2008/02/01/open-biohacking-project/

Events

Indian youth science congress

Date: 5 - 7 June 2009

Organisation: Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development 

 

Registration details

For more information, please email: info_rgniyd@vsnl.net

Lessons from Bt Cotton

GM technology arrived in India in 1995, when US biotech giant Monsanto collaborated with India's Mahyco to import Bt cotton seeds. In 2002, Government of India allowed farmers to commercially cultivate Bt cotton.

 

In 2003, cotton farmers in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh suffered severe agricultural and financial losses, and many committed suicides. Though there was no evidence to link the suicides to Bt cotton losses, in May 2005, then Andhra Pradesh government revoked permission to grow three varieties of Bt cotton. Also, in the Vidarbha  district of Maharashtra, farmers growing Bt cotton accounted for most number of the suicides. This brought Bt cotton to the spotlight again.

 

The polarized opinions of the GM lobbyists and anti-GM activists made a serious inclusive scientific debate quite impossible. The supporters of GM argued that the weak regulatory system allowed entry of illegal Bt cotton seeds in Gujarat and prevented regulators to monitor Bt cotton plantations. Farmers suicides were cited by Prince Charles in a lecture via video conferencing to the New Delhi based NGO Navdanya in November 2008, as "GM Genocide"- one of the ills of GM technology. But a report from the Washington based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in October, 2008 stated, "Despite the recent media hype around farmer suicides fuelled by civil society organizations and reaching the highest political spheres in India and elsewhere, there is no evidence in available data of a resurgence of farmer suicide in the last five years" (http://www.ifpri.org/pubs/dp/IFPRIDP00808.pdf ).  Neither the stand-off between GM supporters and non-supporters nor contradicting reports is helping the farmers or the public.

 

 

Other resources:

ChronologyofBtcottonttp://www.indiaresource.org/issues/agbiotech/2003/chronologyofbt.html

Prospects of Bt cotton http://www.agbioforum.missouri.edu/v7n12/v7n12a04-zehr.htm

GM genocides  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1082559/The-GM-genocide-Thousands-Indian-farmers-committing-suicide-using-genetically-modified-crops.html

Farmers or FIIs? The Bt question http://infochangeindia.org/200711016684/Other/Analysis/Farmers-or-FIIs-The-Bt-cotton-question.html

Organic cotton beats Bt cotton http://www.i-sis.org.uk/OCBBCI.php

IFPRI http://www.ifpri.org/pubs/dp/IFPRIDP00808.pdf

Bt Brinjal

Bt brinjal is India's first genetically modified (GM) edible product. The Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (Mahyco), announced in April, 2009 that the Bt Brinjal is in the final stage of obtaining an approval from the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), the biotechnology regulatory body of the Government of India and would be commercially released by the end of 2009.

 

India is the second largest producer of brinjal after China, accounting for 26% of world production.  It is an important cash crop grown on nearly 550,000 hectares  in India.  Brinjal, the 90-day crop is prone to attack from pests and insects, the most destructive being the Fruit and Shoot borer (FSB), Leucinodes orbonalis. It poses a serious problem because of its high reproductive potential and losses upto 70% in commercial planting have been reported due to FSB. Mahyco claims Bt brinjal can reduce this loss upto 10% and moreover, farmers would require 70% less insecticides to fight  FSB.  Mahyco has already collaborated with three Indian agricultural universities and universities in Bangladesh and the Philippines to share the technology and develop local Bt brinjal seed varieties, suitable to the particular region’s soil and temperature which are also affordable.

 

The safety of GM crops is largely ambiguous. The consumer groups and NGOs have expressed concern over the consumption of Bt brinjal. Mahyco claimed that in terms of composition, it is not different from the normal brinjal, except for the additional Bt protein. Interestingly, the GEAC, between May and September 2006, has granted approval for 24 items, including Bt cotton, Bt cauliflower, Bt brinjal, Bt rice, transgenic rice, Bt castor, Bt groundnut, transgenic tomato and potato. Mahyco  also announced that the company is developing Bt varieties of other vegetables.

 

Other links:

http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/content/india/press/reports/brijal-briefing.pdf

http://www.croplifeasia.org/ref_library/biotechnology/Bt%20Brinjal%20in%20India.pdf

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/09/28/stories/2007092850320800.htm

 

 

Hello Biotech Brains,

I have created this blog for the smart and responsible biotech brains to hang out together. Lets have some space for ourselves to have some informative, creative and entertaining discussions. Welcome to the blog!