A GMO, or genetically modified organism, is an organism whose genes have been modified or edited. When it comes to GMOs, many people think about GMO

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1 A GMO, or genetically modified organism, is an organism whose genes have been modified or edited. When it comes to GMOs, many people think about GMO crops. However, organisms are not only plants. It refers to all living things, including bacteria and fungi. While selective breeding techniques, which involves mixing all genes from two different sources, have been used by humans for several centuries, producing a GMO is much more targeted. Rather than crossing two plants out in the field, a gene or two is inserted into individual cells in the lab. GMOs exist in our everyday lives, beyond only food. For example, bacteria have been genetically modified to produce medicines such as insulin. Insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant genetically modified cotton have allowed farmers to reduce the use of pesticides and herbicides. In this packet developed by the 2018 Virginia igem team, discussions range from microbial leather, genetically modified corn, cultured meat, to some general topics such as how labels influence consumers choice.

2 Microbial Leather Leather is used in many common consumer products such as footwear, clothing, and furniture. However, the leather making process releases chromium as a pollutant in runoff as well as volatile organic compounds, hydrogen sulfide, and other solvent vapors into the air. These pollutants have all been associated with a variety of health problems in humans. This, coupled with a dependency on the livestock industry, has caused some concerns with the sustainability and ethics of the leather making industry. Work has been done to alleviate the environmental impacts of the process, but most leather production is done in developing countries that may suffer from poor regulatory infrastructure. Proponents of the standard manufacturing system point to the fact that most hides used for the leather industry are a byproduct of the livestock industry; however, in the past the demand for leather has exceeded the supply possible from this system. Two alternatives to the traditional leather manufacturing system have been developed. The first is Polyurethane imitation leather, or pleather. This process to produce this does not require any inputs from livestock, and instead involves the conversion of various petrochemicals into a set of plastic polymers that are linked together to give the flexibility, strength, and water resistance of traditional leather products. However, this process s dependence on fossil fuels and production of non-biodegradable plastic pose many of the same environmental concerns as the traditional method. The second alternative to the traditional process of leather production involves the insertion genes for bovine collagen and a set of other enzymes into yeast cells via genetic engineering. This will allow for the production of collagen rawhides through fermentation which can then be turned to leather. Since the product of this process is just collagen sheets, the hair and subcutaneous material removal that is done in the traditional process is not necessary. This avoids the production of the pollutants from those processes. However, the actual tanning process (from rawhide to leather) may still require chromium and could lead to pollution from this chemical. 1. What factors would influence your decision in choosing between these products in the marketplace? If the quality and price of both were the same, would it affect your decision? 2. What concerns do you have on this use of genetic engineering to produce synthetic leather? 3. Do you think this new technology will be accepted by the general public? One way or another, what type of impact will this have on society?

3 Genetically Modified Corn Corn is one of the most widely grown crops in the world. There are currently more than 142 different types of genetically modified corn, the most of any plant species. Almost 90% of the corn grown in the United States go into animal feed and biofuels, while the remainder is processed down into various ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup and cornstarch, or used as the source material to make ingredients such as alcohol and citric acid. 86% of GMO corn is produced by Monsanto, an agricultural biotechnology company. They are also one of three big companies that own 50% of the world s commercial seed production. To use their products, Monsanto has farmers sign a contract in which they agree not to take seeds from the previous year s harvest and replant them. This has led to a significant number of patent infringement lawsuits between Monsanto and farmers. Monsanto argues that it needs these patents to protect its business interests. The company claims that they provide a motivation for spending millions on research and development to continue developing harider, more disease-resistant seeds that can boost food yields. However, opponents of Monsanto and supporters of the sued farmers have argued that the company s current business practices harm farmers by monopolizing corn production and strict patent control. They argue that these practices place an undue financial burden on farmers and show a need for greater ethical considerations and regulations in biotechnology. 1. In the lawsuits described in this scenario, do you support Monsanto or the farmers? Why? 2. Should companies be allowed to patent GMOs? Why or why not? 3. How do ethics play into biotechnology companies? 4. To what degree should GMOs be regulated, and how?

4 Cultured Meat The production of cultured meat, or lab-grown meat, has been a popular topic of discussion over the past half decade. Proponents of this method of meat production claim that it has lower energy use in general, 78 96% lower greenhouse gas emissions, 99% lower land use, and 82 96% lower water use depending on the product compared. However, other studies have disputed these claims, citing high uncertainty and undue optimism about the technology that will be available to future production processes. Cultured meat is produced by taking a sample of cells from the animal whose meat is going to be grown, placing the cells in a growth medium, and growing them in a bioreactor. In the past, the growth medium used has been fetal bovine serum, which is collected from a bovine fetus. However, this type of growth medium is expensive and unsustainable at large scales, thus all companies pursuing cultured meat as a commercial product are developing alternative growth media. Currently, only ground meats have been produced by applying this technology. The process for producing this synthetic meat does not require any genetic engineering, however GMO processes may be employed to produce the required compounds for growth or to make the process more efficient. This has potential impacts culturally, ethically, and environmentally. 1. Would you feel comfortable consuming meat made in this way? Between cultured meat and meat from the traditional system, which would you be more likely to purchase? Why? 2. Since the production of in vitro meat requires taking a sample of cells from the animal, do you consider it vegetarian? Why or why not? 3. What cultural impacts could this system have?

5 Supplemental Discussions 1. Grocery store products have many labels that can determine the price of a product. Labels such as Natural, Gluten free, No hormones, Non-GMO, and Organic increase the price of a product by at least 15%. Labels give transparency but also may negatively impact other non-labeled products. How do labels influence your shopping decisions? Do you think labels do more good or bad? 2. By definition and FDA standards, genetic modification of organisms has been going on for thousands of years when farmers do selective breeding and crossbreeding to produce tastier, bigger, better crops and animals. Genetic engineering is the modification of organisms genomes using modern bioengineering techniques. Is there a difference in traditional genetic modification and modern genetic engineering? If so, where is the boundary between the two? Why? 3. Insulin is a chemical essential for the treatment of diabetes. In 1978, scientists engineered the genome of E. coli bacteria to produce human insulin, which we now use worldwide to treat diabetes. Did you know that insulin is produced by genetically engineered bacteria? Does this affect your perception of or comfort with insulin as a product? 4. Bt cotton is a bollworm resistant genetically engineered cotton introduced by Monsanto in India that was intended to increase cotton yield and decrease pesticide use. However, cotton yield actually decreased due to insects developing resistance towards the pesticide, forcing farmers to use stronger pesticides and increasing their inability to repay their growing debts. This caused over 18,000 Indian farmers to commit suicide in How does GMOs affect different societies? Do biotechnology companies like Monsanto do more good or harm on an international scale? 5. GMOs have been engineered for herbicide tolerance. As a result, superweeds and superbugs have evolved as well, forcing farmers to use stronger and stronger chemicals to combat these. How do you think using GMOs will affect the agricultural landscape in the long run? 6. What are some general concerns you have about GMO products?