GM Kills Sex Drive in Trout and Makes Them Easier to Catch
Posted by Ardent Editor on September 17th, 2008
With diminishing fishery resources and increasing food demand from an ever-growing human population, it is not surprising that aquaculture corporations and multinational biotechnology are funding research and development into genetically modifying fish.
Genetically engineered fish are bred to enhance their commercial viability, like enhanced growth rates, feed conversion efficiency, and tolerance for certain envi
Genetically Modified Salmonella to the Rescue
Posted by Ardent Editor on September 3rd, 2008
Salmonella, a genus of bacteria, is one of the leading causes of foodborne illnesses in the United States. According to the Center for Disease Control, salmonella illnesses about 14 of 100,000 persons each year, with an annual 30,000 reported cases of salmonellosis.
Salmonella may be very bad bacteria, but researchers have discovered a way to transform these distressing bacteria into heroes: genetic modification.
GM Root Systems Make Result in Plants that Survive with Little Water
Posted by Ardent Editor on August 20th, 2008
One of the major problems confronting the earth today is the severe water shortage in many regions, causing adverse impacts on people, animals, and plants. This is specifically not good for crops that need a lot of water to survive.
Sure, many types of plants survive with less water requirements such as cactus, jade plant, century plant, snake plant, sedum, etc. But all-important food crops such as rice, wheat, ma
Genetically Modified Athletes
Posted by Ardent Editor on August 6th, 2008
The 2008 Beijing Olympics is only a day away as of this writing. Athletes around the world are raring to give their countrymen honor and glory by winning their respective sports nice and clean. But there has never been a "clean" Olympics.
In fact, Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) expects about 40 positive doping results at the Beijing Games, compared to 26 positive
The Science Behind Designer Babies
Posted by Ardent Editor on July 16th, 2008
The term "designer baby" used to be found only in weblogs and sci-fi movies. But in 2004 the term made its way to the Oxford English Dictionary. The dictionary defines it as "a baby whose genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering combined with in vitro fertilization to ensure the presence or absence of particular genes or characteristics."
From fiction to non-fiction
Green Plastics from Plants
Posted by Ardent Editor on May 16th, 2008
One day, there would come a time when even synthetic materials like plastics could be created from natural organisms like plants. This is the focus in a research being done in Australia, turning plants into ‘biofactories’ that could produce oil which then can be used to replace petrochemicals utilized to manufacture a variety of products, including plastics.
The joint partnership of Commonwealth Scient
An Analysis on GM Crops in Asian Countries
Posted by Ardent Editor on May 6th, 2008
Because of the apparent threat of a global food crisis, some sectors are turning into genetically modified products to increase yield for consumption. Still, not all are into the plan.
There were five countries that were focused in the article. These are the Philippines, Japan, South Korea, China, and Thailand. The article was ordered in such a way that the countries most receptive to GM crops were presented first
Herbicide Tolerant Plants Can Help Improve Water Quality
Posted by Ardent Editor on April 23rd, 2008
Although genetically modified crops are getting so much flak today, there seems to be some instances where they may provide some positive benefits in some areas related to farming and the environment. According to an article on the sciencedaily website, a team of researchers found out that genetically modified herbicide tolerant crops may have helped reduce herbicide runoff in watersheds and improve water quality i
Report Says GM Has No Role in Solving World Hunger and Poverty
Posted by Ardent Editor on April 16th, 2008
In an article on the GM Watch website, many of the world’s leading scientists have condemned current industrial farming practices and see no role of genetic engineering in solving the hunger crisis in the world today, so says in the report released by International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD). In the midst of soaring prices of commodities in the world market and
Getting Down on GM Food Labeling
Posted by Ardent Editor on April 9th, 2008
Labeling GM food has been under close scrutiny especially in the United States. It seems that most biotech companies are against it for fear that it will prevent consumers from eventually avoiding buying foods that might contain genetically modified crops as ingredients.
But lack of proper labeling might work against the consumers themselves when it comes to having the right to know. Different camps on the debate