Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO)

Genetically Modified Organsims (GMO)

Several narratives have been peddled about a depopulation agenda, but this time linked to what we willfully consume: GMOs.

Could this be true? Let’s dive into the science behind GMOs.

Social media is undoubtedly our go-to source for clarity, especially when encountering something unfamiliar. At one time, you, my dear reader have looked your symptoms via search engines, at least once. And if I’m right the results only contributed to your anxiety. While these results are accurate, they are often not specific to you. But that’s not the focus of this article. This article explores GMOs, their advantages– and perhaps, their disadvantages, if any, thereby curbing misinformation.

A study on GMO discussion on Twitter was done by Erokhin and Komendantova (2023). In their research, they employed sentiment and topical analysis to identify the prevalent theme and attitudes toward GMOs. 30% of the tweets were negative, 21.65% were neutral, and 43.43% were positive. In another study done by Lynas et al. (2022), between the years 2019 and 2021, they discovered that “Misinformation on GMOs and human health had the highest readership, with 139 million out of 2.1 billion potential views.”

Misinformation according to Merriam Webster dictionary is “incorrect or misleading information”.

What then is correct?

What are Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)?

They are organisms whose genes have been modified or altered genetically. The gene of an organism encodes its structures and functions. However, in this case, naturally occurring organisms have their original state altered. This alteration confers on them new traits or characteristics. GMOs are employed across various fields, including medicine, agriculture, and research. In agriculture, farmers rear crops and animals with desirable traits, in medicine GMOs are used in the production of vaccines and gene therapy.

Genetically Modified Organisms : How are they made?

• Gene Identification

The gene responsible for the desired trait is identified. For example, in agriculture, genes responsible for enhanced nutritional content and drought resistance might be identified.

• Gene Isolation

When the genes of interest are identified, they are isolated using molecular tools and methods. Many copies of these genes are then created using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique.

• Gene Insertion

Once the genes are isolated, they are inserted into the genome of the target plant or animal.

• Regeneration, testing and production.

Whole plants are created from the successfully altered cells.The plants are grown to see if they express desirable traits. If they do, they are then reviewed by regulatory agencies before mass production for consumption.

For instance, scientists developed golden rice, a type of rice genetically modified to produce beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A. This modification aims to help prevent vitamin A deficiency, which can lead to blindness in children.

Are Genetically modified foods considered safe?

You might be thinking, “aren’t we eating mutants?”

We will see if this is true in the second part of this article. In the next article, we will dive into Genetically modified foods and their safety.

Thank you :)