The global economy depends on agriculture in so many ways. From the clothes we wear
and the food we eat, to the medicine and vitamins we take and the houses we live
in – agriculture has played a major role, and will only continue to play a larger
role in the future due to the expanding knowledge of agricultural genetics.
In the GreenBio, you can find news articles, events, reports and general information
about the following fields that changing the way the world views agriculture:
» Transplantation
There is a worldwide shortage of organs for clinical transplantation and, many patients
due to receive new organs die on the waiting list. Recent advances in understanding
the mechanisms of transplant organ rejection have made it possible to consider that
organs from other species, such as pigs, may soon be engineered to minimize the
risk of serious rejection and used as an alternative to human tissues. Such transplants,
known as xenotransplantations, could help put an end to organ shortages.
GreenBio will follow the field of xenotransplantation, the progress and the many
novel medical, legal and ethical issues.
» Pharmaceutical Production (Biopharmaceuticals)
Developments in agricultural genetics has made it possible to add a specific gene
or group of genes to a plant or animal. This enables them to express products such
as proteins, monoclonal antibody, peptides, enzymes and vaccines for the treatment
of diseases such as: cancer, AIDS, arthritis, blood pressure, diabetes and more.
» Phytoremediation
The word's etymology comes from the Greek “phyto” = plant, and Latin “remedium”
= restoring balance, or remediating. Today, phytoremediation means depolluting contaminated
soils, water or air with plants able to contain, degrade or eliminate metals, pesticides,
solvents, explosives, crude oil and its derivatives, and various other contaminants,
from the mediums that contain them. It is clean, efficient, inexpensive and non-environmentally
disruptive, as opposed to processes that require excavation of soil.
» Enhanced Agriculture
Due to a better understanding of genetics and cellular biology, it is possible to
enhance today’s crops by adding specific genes that enhance the plant’s overall
performance. The general field is referred to as agricultural biotechnology and
the crops benefiting from this know how are referred to as transgenic plants among
scientist, and more commonly as: genetically enhanced, genetically modified, genetically
engineered, GM or GE
» Marker Assisted Selection
Marker-assisted selection (MAS) is a sophisticated new technique that makes use
of expanding knowledge of plants at the genetic level to assist plant breeders in
developing new crops with desirable traits. With MAS, scientists locate the chromosomal
regions (markers) in plants that are associated with desirable traits, and use this
information to speed up traditional plant breeding.