There is and increasing demand for healthy foods that lower health risks and increase life span making lettuce which is commonly used in salads and sandwiches a very important vegetable and dietary staple in the western world. Lettuce was the second most consumed fresh vegetable per capita in the U.S. in 2008. Genetic mutation has and continues to play an important role in the evolution and improvement of lettuce. Mutations are occurring naturally and in the wild but at a very slow rate due to the inbred nature of lettuce. Resulting beneficial factors can be selected and exploited for human needs. There are several mutagenic agents such as x-rays and ultraviolet radiation that can be used to speed up mutation rates or produce mutants that do not occur naturally. The main purpose of creating these mutations is to achieve a desired goal, such as growing miniature lettuce heads or growing herbicide tolerant lettuce. The miniature lettuce mutation could potentially save an entire crop. Lettuce has a tendency to prematurely bolt, which is a rapid stem elongation, this rapid elongation of the stem will make a commercial lettuce crop worthless. These dwarf mutants were found to lack the gibberellic acid which is involved in regulation in stem elongation therefore they do not have this problem of premature bolting. Another major mutation on the world of lettuce and agriculture in general is herbicide tolerant plants. Weeds growing in leafy vegetables, such as lettuce, can lower crop yield and quality so it is essential to have them removed. The easiest way to remove these weeds would be with the application of a herbicide which would also kill the lettuce since it is a plant. So with an herbicide tolerant lettuce you can spray your fields with a general herbicide to kill the weeds and not have to worry about damaging your crop. Another mutation that has occurred in lettuce has lead to lettuce that is resistant to downy mildew. When having disease resistance plants you no longer have to worry about crop damage and loss due to disease and you also no longer have to worry about application of pesticides and all the hassles that accompany it.
This article interested me because it related with something I have a big interest in, which is plants and plant diseases, and related it to genetics by talking about mutating genes to create a desired crop or prevent disease.
Hunter Morris
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3263626/?tool=pubmed
I think that speeding up the mutations in our foods and creating pesticide resistant varieties suits the needs of our growing and changing population. But, do you agree with the article that genetically modifying plants by the use of x-rays and UV radiation to create mutations that don't occur naturally so that they can be "exploited for human needs." is healthy for humans or the environment in general? My opinion is that forcing nature to do what it can't do naturally is too risky.
ReplyDeleteHannah Quick
It is possible that with the growing depletion of the ozone layer and thinning in certain areas, UV transmission is going to occur naturally in the near future. For the plants, it should not be as serious of a problem. The area of concern is for humans having mutations if they themselves are exposed to UV radiation due to the creation of thymine dimers. X-rays on the other hand could break the DNA backbone and causes serious problems in humans and plants and would furhtermore cause mutations.
ReplyDeleteSara Puckett
As to healthy for the environment, in the long terms it really won't make a difference. Plans and nature has a strong tendency to survive no matter what issues arrive. The alteration by humans will eventually be naturally repaired or the plant will die. As the affect on humans,that depends on what is killed by the x-ray radiation. More then likely humanity will adapt or just reject the lettuce leading to diet changes.
ReplyDeleteHalden Hoover
Very interesting article.. could creating mutations in our plants "food" cause harmful effects to our health? Is it possible if they are doing this with lettuce plants to do it with other "rare" species?
ReplyDeleteAndrew Presgraves
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ReplyDeleteThere is always the potential for something, that is scientifically altered by a means that is dangerous to humans, to potentially harm humans. I feel very confident that before anything is released to the public very thorough testing would be perfomed to ensure the safety of the consumer. Since this is such a rapidily growing field and potentially the future of agriculture im sure all precautions would be taken to prevent any harm.
ReplyDeleteHunter Morris
Having plants that will never have a problem with a disease is a big mountain that I think that we are going to never get to the top of. The thing with genetically modified plants is that there is going to be a type of resistance some time in the future because of the diseases getting used to the GMO. This being said I think that having plants that will never have a disease problem is something that we are just going to dream about.
ReplyDelete-Patrick Scott