This tobacco plant has been genetically altered so that it contains a firefly gene, which makes it glow. Define genetic engineering in your own words.

What have you learned so far about the following terms? PCR Polymerase Chain Reaction DNA Fingerprint Gel Electrophoresis Restriction Enzymes

Standard: Students will analyze how biological traits are passed on to successive generations. Element: Examine the use of DNA technology in forensics, medicine, and agriculture. EQ: How is DNA technology used in the medical field?

Genetic engineering is the deliberate alteration of the genetic material of an organism by using DNA technology. The process often involves inserting the genes from one organism into another. DNA that has been combined by genetic engineering is called recombinant DNA.

Many genetic disorders occur when a specific protein, such as insulin, is missing or malformed due to a gene mutation. The disorder may be treated by supplying the needed protein. Many drug companies are now genetically engineering organisms to produce specific proteins for human use.

One example of genetic engineering in medicine is the production of the protein insulin. Insulin is made in the human pancreas and released into the blood when sugar (glucose) levels get too high. Millions of people who are Diabetics cannot properly produce or use their insulin protein and must get it from another source. Researchers took the insulin gene and placed it into a bacterial cell to create bacteria that produced insulin. Insulin is now readily available and affordable. This is an example of a medical use for recombinant DNA. Website to show genetic engineering of insulin using bacteria. http://www.abpischools.org.uk/res/coResourceImport/modules/hormones/en-flash/geneticeng.cfm

Another possible treatment for genetic disorders is to insert a functional "replacement" gene into a person's cells by using a genetically engineered virus as a vector (carrier for the gene). This technique is called gene therapy. Non-viral vectors are being researched for gene therapy because of the problems that viruses may cause.

Gene Therapy and Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Cystic Fibrosis is a disease that is caused by the mutation of a gene that codes for a single protein. The lack of this protein results in the body’s inability to maintain a salt balance in cells resulting in a thick mucous that clogs the lungs and airway passages. Patients with CF often die by the age of 25 or 30. Gene therapy of the patient’s somatic (body) cells using the common cold virus to carry the normal gene to the CF patient’s cells has been used since 1989 with limited success. Stem Cell Therapy may offer the most promising treatment in the future.

Another type of DNA technology used in medicine is the use of stem cells. A stem cell is a cell that can continuously divide and differentiate into various tissues. The type of stem cell is named by where it comes from. Adult stem cells are found in tissues such as skin, muscle, and bone marrow where repair takes place. Embryonic stem cells come from the early embryo and can become almost any type of cell. Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSC) are cells that come from tissues such as skin that have been reprogrammed into embryonic stem cells.

With the development of iPSC, there is hope for producing organs and tissues using the patient’s own cells, thus reducing the chance of tissue rejection. http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/stemcells/sctypes/