The value of genetically modified technology should not be underestimated; scientific and technological progress drives social development
The topic of genetically modified organisms seems to have never died down in recent years. Science for Agriculture believes that genetically modified technology is just a tool, and how it is used and how much value it can deliver depends on how humans harness it. In this respect, it is no different from the electricity, mobile phones, nuclear energy and so on that we use.
It has been less than half a century since the development of genetic engineering technology began with the successful in vitro DNA recombination experiment in the 1970s, yet it has already shown tremendous potential. Although many people today oppose genetically modified organisms, there is no doubt that many people are enjoying the results brought by genetically modified technology. When discussing the value of this technology, we can talk about it from the following aspects.
Medical and health care
For a long time, the controversy over genetically modified organisms has centered on the agricultural field. However, what many do not realize is that in the medical and health field, genetically modified products are already very numerous. Let us look at a few examples. Everyone knows that diabetes patients suffer from high blood sugar because the pancreas does not secrete enough insulin. As for treatment, there is currently no very good solution, and basically the method of insulin injection is used. Perhaps some people are not quite aware that, as far as insulin is concerned, if it had to be extracted from the human body or the bodies of other animals, then among the world's diabetes patients, I am afraid only some wealthy people could afford treatment. The main reason ordinary people can currently afford diabetes treatment is that through recombinant genes, insulin is expressed in large quantities in bacterial strains and then extracted.
Secondly, according to an earlier report, the United States treated some patients with weak vision through gene therapy. These patients could not express a gene related to vision in their bodies, and scientists used injection therapy to inject the expressed gene into the patients' body cells and have it expressed. However, the current treatment cost is still relatively high, but this is already a major advance in medicine.
As for many antibiotics, they are also produced through genetically modified means, because merely relying on trace expression in bacterial strains would be difficult to meet the large demand of humans.
Agriculture
Here let us not drag in so many conspiracy theories. Speaking strictly on the facts, genetically modified genes are very helpful for improving crop quality, increasing yield and enhancing crop mechanization capability. Any one of these aspects can promote the development of the agricultural industry.
Take the recently approved Golden Rice in the United States. It involves not only agriculture but also human health issues. As for the yield of Golden Rice, it is not much higher than ordinary rice, but it is rich in beta-carotene and can eliminate vitamin A deficiency in the human body. This is where its greatest value lies.
As for other genetically modified varieties with improved quality, such as increasing soybean oil content and increasing wheat protein content, they can also quickly achieve breakthroughs in breeding and shorten the breeding period.
As for insect-resistant and herbicide-resistant varieties, they have great application potential for reducing pesticides and improving the food safety of crops.
The value of genetically modified technology cannot be simply measured in money, and the technology is also constantly being updated and improved. Take the latest CRISPR/Cas9. By the definitions of many countries, it does not count as genetically modified, and it can also be regarded as another major breakthrough in the field of gene editing.
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