Can we engineer life? 3.3 Well-being for all
In 1971 I did a work placement at Tel Aviv University in Israel. It was a wonderful and decisive period in my life. The researchers in the lab judged it more important that I got to know their country, than that I did some research for them. Saturday, Sabbath, was their only day off, but
Séralini disproven – what will the EU do now?
Anyone who opposes genetically modified (GM) food can tell you that ‘in France’ they found that GM maize causes cancer in rats. This study was conducted under leadership of Gilles-Éric Séralini, professor in molecular biology at the University of Caen. His results, published in 2012, caused an upheaval. They stopped short the very gradual change
Can we engineer life? 2.3 Precision modification of the genome
Gene technology is a much-discussed technology with almost endless opportunities. Opponents have objected to it right from the start. Their worry was and is, that researchers do not exactly know what they’re doing when they adjust genes and modify the genome, where they’re doing it, and what the consequences might be. Opponents look upon gene
Can we engineer life? 2.2 Development of recombinant-DNA technology
In 1973, Stanley Cohen and Herbert Boyer of Stanford University and University of California, did the first successful recombinant-DNA experiments on the bacterium Escherichia coli. Through genetic ‘cutting and pasting’ they succeeded in introducing resistance in this bacterium that inhabits our guts, to two antibiotics, tetracycline and kanamycine. Hans Tramper is professor emeritus in Bioprocess
Can we engineer life? 2.1 From evolution to revolution
Only quite recently historically speaking, mankind acquired the know-how to change the properties of living species: as people settled and developed agriculture. But it required a revolution, much later, to develop the knowledge to do this in a purposeful way. Hans Tramper is professor emeritus in Bioprocess Technology at Wageningen University and reflects on the
Can we engineer life? 1 Gene technology is the key
1973 was a remarkable year. We witnessed the first global energy crisis, leading to motor car-free Sundays in the Netherlands. In the US, president Nixon had to resign because of the Watergate affair. In the scope of the series of essays that I envisage, 1973 marks the start of gene technology. Hans Tramper is professor
Why cannot organic farmers benefit from New Breeding Techniques?
The real sustainability revolution in farming is New Breeding Techniques like CRISPR. Why are organic farmers blocked from using them? This article by David Warmflash was originally published on the site of Genetic Literacy Project. Organic farming opposes genetic engineering How do we define ‘organics’? From a legal perspective, the term can only be applied
GMO adversaries get enclosed from all sides
An interesting article in the Guardian, last week, shed light on new strategies to combat insect attacks on food and commercial crops, through genetic modification. But in such a way that the modified genes will not show up in the product. It may even not be the crop in question that is genetically modified, but
on: 10 June 2018