Name: Mary Joy Elibada Date: September 14, 2014
Topic: Genetically Modified Organism

Genetically modified organism is an organism whose genetic material has been altered during genetic engineering techniques. Organisms that undergo in the processes of genetic engineering enables to change its characteristics from its original characteristics. Insects, plants, fish, mammals, bacteria and yeast are the organisms that can be genetically modified. Genetic modification is used to manipulate, remove, add or change the genes of an organism to achieve the desired characteristics. If there is organism that needs to be improve, we can use other organism even if they are in different specie, and get its genes to be implant to the first organism that can finally achieve the desired traits. In result we made a new organism. We can apply the idea of genetic modification in the plantation of fruits and vegetables. For example, there are plants that can’t resist extremely cold temperature in a long period of time like tomatoes, that can result in decaying of tomatoes that cannot be sell anymore. This is what scientist where able to change the genetic modification. They figure out a way to take DNA from one organism and put it inside the completely different organism to create a desired specific outcome. We can get genes from an arctic fish that can stand in a very low temperature and put it inside the tomatoe’s DNA so that the tomatoes can stand the same temperature. In this process, farmers will be sure that the money they used will be returning because crops won’t decay and there will be no shortage in food products. Other benefits of genetic engineering in agriculture are reduced costs for food or drug production, reduced need for pesticides, enhanced nutrient composition and food quality and resistance to pests and disease. GMO’s are also in biological and medical research, production of pharmaceutal drugs, and experimental medicine. By the use of genetic engineering, new kind of insulin had made called Synthetic or Human Isulin. Many are switched into this new insulin because Eli Lily and the company who are the manufacturer of insulins had stopped to make the two most popular animal insulin. Some people who used Human Isulin reported that after injecting this insulin, they sent into coma and some died. In the fact that GMO bring us many benefits in agriculture, we encounter consequences or problems that may take us at risk. We don’t know if the GMOs that human take up as food will bring us good or bad effect. What if scientists make a mistake in putting genes in our crops but didn’t recognize it until that was being taken up by the people. Not only human, it will also cause ecological imbalances, allowing previously harmless plants to grow uncontrolled, thus promoting the spread of disease among both plants and animals. Instead of helping us in our everyday living it may serves as an additional problem in the current problems we are facing now. The inventions and study that are scientists making is a good thing because more and more we’re getting aware of what we don’t know in the environment we where in. They discover new things that human can use for better living in a complicated world. But does it reasonable to manipulate living things, is it good to hear that we people making new unknown organism that going to live with us in environment. What if someday, because of growing technology scientists will use human to change its genes. We must take control the use of technology. Inventing new things is not new and natural, but inventing new organisms, for me it’s kind of scary. Lets do not use the science in things that will change the natural environment.