Genetically Modified Organisms

(GMO)

A Scientific Perspective

Presentation to Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Land Affairs 15th November, 2005

Professor M.Iqbal ParkerUniversity of Cape Town

What is Biotechnology?

• Two definitions

General Definition

“Biotechnology is a body of techniques that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives

thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use.”

1st Generation Biotechnology

• Insulin

• Growth Hormones

• Cheese Production

• Beer Production

• Many Others

3rd Generation Biotechnology

Biotechnology is a set of technologies including, but not confined to, tissue culture and recombinant DNA techniques, bioinformatics and genomics, proteomics and structural biology, and all other techniques employed for the genetic modification of living organisms, used to exploit and modify living organisms so as to produce new intellectual property, tools, goods, products and services.

3rd Generation Biotechnology

• Hormones - Insulin

• Vaccines - Tb HIV/AIDS Malaria

• Others

• Policy and Legislative Reforms• Ethical Issues • Public Understanding of Biotechnology

The Role of Agriculture in Africa

• 40% of the harvest may be lost due to post-harvest damage

• Population will double by 2025 to 1.5 billion

• Most African countries depend on agriculture for foreign currency earnings

Projected cereal yield in 2025

Region Shortfall(million tons)

Sub-Saharan Africa -88.7

East & Southeast Asia -126.9

Middle East -132.7

Particle Gun / Biolistics

Gold particlesand DNA

Plant Cell

Chromosome Nucleus

Biolistic Gene Gun

Bombarded cells produce callus tissue

Callus tissue produces

shoots and roots

and transgenic plants

UNIDO: Biotechnology Priorities in Africa

• Virus resistant African crops eg. Maize streak virus

• Parasitic weed resistance eg. Striga

• Bt maize African varieties

• Decrease mycotoxin levels eg. Bt maize

• Drought tolerant African crops

• Virus resistanceVirus resistance

Agricultural biotechnology research

in Southern Africa

Maize streak virus is endemic in Africa causing huge economic losses

to commercial

and small scale farmers

Control and transgenic MSV resistant plants

Healthy Cassava

Virus-infected Cassava

MSV and Africa Cassava Mosaic VirusResistance Strategies

• Most plant viruses = RNA coat proteinR

• MSV and ACMV = DNA viruses CP infection

• Virus Replication associated protein replication initiation as multimers

• Mutant, truncated Rep inhibition virus replication

Focus Areas

• Human Health– Vaccines– Biopharmaceutical production

• Food security

• Plant production

• Animal health

• Sustainable industrial development