Sliced Apple That Won't turn Brown

A B.C. biotechnology company is entering the final stages of an application to the United States to market genetically modified apples that do not turn brown when sliced.

The technology employed by Okanagan Specialty Fruits inhibits browning of apple flesh by turning off a gene that produces the enzyme polyphenol oxidase, according to company president Neal Carter, an orchardist in the Okanagan since 1995.

The company has developed non-browning Golden Delicious and Granny Smith apples that are included in a petition to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The company brands the non-browning fruit with the label "Arctic."

Varieties of apple such as the Golden Delicious tend to brown quickly when sliced and exposed to the air and show scuff marks from picking and transport, cosmetic deterioration Okanagan Specialty says its products will resist. The company is owned by a consortium of fruit growers, packers and other fruit industry firms, mainly from British Columbia.

"People buy with their eyes, they always pick the fruit that looks the best," Carter said.

Critics of the technology worry that a gene-modified apple would invoke consumer mistrust of a food that is iconic of natural goodness.

"This is a technology that supports industrial farming, it is not a product that addresses any consumer need," said Lucy Sharratt, coordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network.

"Parents may not want to feed their children brown sliced apples or see them thrown away at school, but I doubt they'd prefer a genetically modified apple," Sharratt said.

The food service industry uses acidic solutions of water and vitamin C or lemon juice to keep sliced fruit from turning brown.

Genes Tied to Puberty, Body Fat in Girls Spotted

Scientists have pinpointed 30 genes that control the timing of puberty in females. They also believe many of these genes also play a role in body weight regulation or fat metabolism.

The international team of researchers analyzed 32 genome-wide association studies that included more than 87,000 women from Australia, Europe and the United States. Thet then performed replication studies in another group of almost 15,000 women.

In addition to the two genes already known to play a role in the timing of puberty, the team identified 30 new genes and suggestive evidence for another 10 genes.

The newly identified genes include four that have previously been associated with body mass index (a clinical measure of ewight), three that play a role in metabolism, and three that play a role in hormone regulation, according to the report, which is scheduled to be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Nature Genetics.

Bacteria Trained To Convert Bio - Wastes Into Plastic

A scientist has 'trained' bacteria to convert all the main sugars in vegetable, fruit and garden waste efficiently into high-quality green bioplastics.

By adapting the eating pattern of bacteria and subsequently training them, Jean-Paul Meijnen, a microbiologist at the TU Delft in The Netherlands, has succeeded in converting sugars in processable materials, so that no bio-waste is wasted.

The technical problems associated with turning potato peel into sunglasses, or cane sugar into car bumpers, have already been solved. But the current methods are not very efficient: only a small percentage of the sugars can be converted into valuable products, according to a TU Delft statement.

In the new experiment, the favoured raw materials for such processes are biological wastes left over from food production. Lignocellulose, the complex combination of lignin and cellulose present in the stalks and leaves of plants that gives them their rigidity, is such a material.

The Rs 1,550 cr Biocon -Pfizer Deal...

Bangalore-headquartered biotech firm Biocon has entered into a $350-million (Rs 1,550 crore) strategic alliance with drug-major Pfizer on Monday for marketing Biocon’s insulin products. The agreement includes the commercialisation of Biocon’s biosimilar versions of insulin and insulin analog products: recombinant human insulin, glargine, aspart and lispro, Biocon said.

The potential market for these four products, according to Kiran Mazumdar Shaw , chairman and MD of Biocon, would roughly be around $20 billion by 2015. Biocon hopes to combine the synergies of Pfizer’s marketing and distribution networks and its own cost-effective developing and manufacturing capabilities to grab a piece of the $14-billion biosimilar market.

Their main competitors would be Novo Nordisk, Sanofi Aventis and Eli Lilly. The rival companies are betting on the fact that by 2015, a number of insulin analogs are expected to lose patents. This would create large opportunities in the biosimilar market which would, in turn, give them a first-mover advantage.

In addition to the $350 million, the company will also receive additional payments linked to Pfizer’s sales of its four insulin biosimilar products across global markets, the company added. Under the terms of the agreement, Pfizer will make upfront payments of $200 million. Biocon is also eligible to receive an additional development and regulatory milestone payment of up to $150 million.

Rakesh Bamzai, marketing head, Biocon, said the firm would be investing around $300 million in the next three years to ramp up its biosimilar capacity in India and also look at manufacturing facilities in Malaysia. Ms Shaw added that currently there is enough capacity to meet the needs of Pfizer for the next five years. Pfizer will have exclusive rights to commercialise these products globally, with certain exceptions, including co-exclusive rights for all of the products with Biocon in Germany, India and Malaysia, it said. The market for diabetes drugs and devices in 2010 is estimated at $40 billion with insulins accounting for $14 billion or 35% of the diabetes segment.

Different innovations in Plant science are important for helping farmers in conserving biodiversity and providing a sustainable food supply for all

According to United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), food production still needs to increase by 70% if we are willing to feed nine billion people by 2050. To achieve this, a further 30 million hectares cropland may be needed (OECD). If biodiversity is to be preserved, the amount of parkland, forests and natural habitats brought into agricultural use has to be minimised.

Togetherly, plant science technology, crop protection and plant biotechnology, will help farmers in increasing the productivity of existing arable land in use, resulting in reduction of the need of expanding agricultural land, limiting the loss of biodiversity and natural habitats. Whereas, biotech crops are already contributing to higher yields for many farmers around the world who have potential to increase yields globally by up to 25%. Plant breeding practices, including biotechnology, have further led to an increase in the genetic variety of crops.

Crop protection and plant biotechnology products will increase agricultural productivity by reducing crop losses to pests and disease. Without them, yield losses would double to reach 40-80%. They are critical to protecting local biodiversity from the impact of invasive alien species, such as the salt cedar tree in the US, which can consume up to 1,000 liters of water in one day, and increase the salinity of surrounding water and soil. Agriculture is both reliant on a rich ecosystem, and a vital force in maintaining it.

Farmers today are facing a double challenge of having to increase their productivity while preserving the rich biodiversity upon which long-term food security depends.

Traditional and Modern Food Biotechnology

With the increase in the global demand for food and food products, scientists all over the world have been probing the possibility of finding a way to increase crop yields, enhance and improve the nutritional value and taste, while protecting the environment by reducing the use of chemicals such as pesticides. This is where biotechnology comes into the picture by providing the required technology to achieve those.

Traditional and Modern Food Biotechnology:

Food biotechnology is not a new concept. It had already been used long before the term itself was coined. For centuries, man has been exploiting biology to make food products such as bread, beer, wine, and cheese. For example, man had already learnt the method of fermenting fruit juices to concoct alcoholic beverages during the period around 6000 BC. Traditionally, the most common form of food biotechnology is the process in which seeds from the highest yielding and best tasting corn are grown each year, resulting in the better yield year after year.

The process of obtaining the best traits in food products became much easier with the introduction of "genetic engineering" and "gene cloning" in modern food biotechnology about two decades ago. Now, by transferring and altering genes, scientists can remove certain genetic characteristics from units and move it into the genetic code of another, to make them more resistant to diseases, richer in vitamins and minerals, etc. Food biotechnology has also made plant breeding safer since single genes can now be transferred without moving thousands, making it possible to identify those defective genes or their proteins which may be harmful or toxic.

In the United States and many parts of the world, crops and food products such as soyabeans, corn, cotton, canola, papaya, and squash produced through biotechnology have become significant components of the people's diet.

What are the Benefits?

Nutrition: Foods that are genetically engineered or produced through food biotechnology are more nutritious because they tend to contain more vitamin and minerals since they are made from a combination of select traits that are considered to be the best.

Safety: Foods from biotechnology are much safer because the possibility of toxin content is almost minimal in comparison to those grown traditionally. This is because any gene containing toxin or suspected to be toxic is removed during transferring and altering of genes.

Better Yield: Food biotechnology seems to increase crop yields by introducing food crops that are more resistant to harsh climates, decreasing the amount of diseased units, and improving the productivity of a particular crop etc. This becomes very practical considering the amount of food in demand, and consumed globally.

Reducing the need for chemical insecticides: Food biotechnology also opens the possibility of producing crops that are naturally or self-resistant to diseases and pests. For example, the gene for a bacterial protein which kills insect pests has successfully been introduced into a range of crops, reducing the need for chemical insecticides. Pest-protected crops also allow for less potential exposure of farmers and groundwater to chemical residues.

The Benefits Of Agricultural Biotechnology

Agricultural biotechnology is any technique in which living organisms, or parts of organisms are altered to make or modify agricultural products, to improve crops, or develop microbes for specific uses in agricultural processes. Simply put, when the tools of biotechnology are applied to agriculture, it is termed as "agricultural biotechnology". Genetic engineering is also a part of agricultural biotechnology in today's world. It is now possible to carry out genetic manipulation and transformation on almost all plant species, including all the world's major crops.

Plant transformation is one of the tools involved in agricultural biotechnology, in which genes are inserted into the genetic structure or genome of plants. The two most common methods of plant transformation are Agrobacterium Transformation - methods that use the naturally occurring bacterium; and Biolistic Transformation - involving the use of mechanical means. Using any of these methods the preferred gene is inserted into a plant genome and traditional breeding method followed to transfer the new trait into different varieties of crops.

Production of food crops has become much cheaper and convenient with the introduction of agricultural biotechnology. Specific herbicide tolerant crops have been engineered which makes weed control manageable and more efficient. Pest control has also become more reliable and effective, eliminating the need for synthetic pesticides as crops resistant to certain diseases and insect pests have also been engineered. Phytoremediation is the process in which plants detoxify pollutants in the soil, or absorb and accumulate polluting substances out of the soil. Several crops have now been genetically engineered for this purpose for safe harvest and disposal, and improvement of soil quality.

According to the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture)'s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), in reference to a section specific to the major biotechnology derived field crops, out of the whole crop plantings in the United States in 2004, biotechnology plantings accounted for about 46 percent for corn, 76 percent for cotton, and 85 percent for soybeans.

Modern agricultural biotechnology has now become a very well-developed science. The use of synthetic pesticides that may be harmful to man, and pollute groundwater and the environment, has been significantly lessened with the introduction of genetically engineered insect-resistant cotton. Herbicide-tolerant soybeans and corn have also enabled the use of reduced-risk herbicides that break down more quickly in soil. These are nontoxic to plants or animals, and herbicide-tolerant crops help preserve topsoil from erosion since they thrive better in no-till or reduced tillage agriculture systems. Papayas resistant to the ringspot virus were also developed through genetic engineering, which saved the U.S. papaya industry.

Agricultural biotechnology may also be helpful in improving and enhancing the nutritious quality of certain crops. For example, enhancing the levels of beta-carotene in canola, soybean, and corn improves oil compositions, and reduces vitamin A deficiencies in rice. There are also researches going on in the field of biotechnology to produce crops that will not be affected by harsh climates or environments and that will require less water, fertiliser, labour etc. This would greatly reduce the demands and pressures on land and wildlife.