Cloning and the Green Revolution March 1, 2010 Dr. Olga M. Lazín UCLA Visiting Scholar

The First Green Revolution  The Green Revolution is the name of the phenomenon of modifying agriculture using molecular means in order to improve yield.  This method was propagated by Norman Borlaug.  Increased output of Agriculture in the Countries of Mexico and India in the 1960s and 1970s.

The First Green Revolution  This method utilized the usage of pesticides, fertilizer, and improved techniques of irrigation.  Used the process of “natural selection” to select for the most efficient strains of plants to be used for crops.  Crops with favorable traits such as resistance to disease and high yield were selected for.

Downfalls of First Green Revolution  The pesticides used were found to harm both the plants and the animals that ingested these plants, including humans.  DDT (Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane) is a major example of a pesticide that negatively affects humans and animals.  It has been shown to cause reproductive harm, has been linked to cancer, and other illnesses.

DDT

Downfalls of First Green Revolution  Another downfall to this technique is that it takes a long time (~months to years) and must be done in the field.  It is inefficient as the results are often irreproducible and the productive strains can be lost.

The Second Green Revolution  The second revolution focused more on genetic manipulations to create more productive strains of plants.  This could be done in the laboratory rather than in the field.  Results were reproducible and easily done.  Traits like taste, yield, resistance to virus and disease could be selected for.

The Second Green Revolution  This was a very efficient technique that could produce results rapidly (~few weeks)

Genetic Manipulation  You can alter the genes at the nucleotide level.  All of the genomes of multicellular terrestrial organisms are encoded in the form of DNA.  DNA is made up of a varying sequences of the nucleotide bases Adenine(A), Guanine(G), Thymine(T), and Cytosine(C).

Central Dogma of Biology  DNA is transcribed into RNA where it is translated into a functional proteins.  Proteins are responsible for most of the characteristics that organisms exhibit including functionality, taste, and other qualities.

Cloning  These concepts are not as controversial in plants as they are in animals because this type of genetic variation and manipulation occurs in plants naturally.  This occurs in animals to a much smaller scale and over evolutionary time (millions of years).

History of Cloning  In 1938 the German scientist Hans Spemann proposed a method to transfer one cell's nucleus into an egg without a nucleus which is the basic method for cloning.  In 1972 Paul Berg created the first recombinant DNA molecules.

History of Cloning  In 1973, Cohen and Boyer applied this method and create the first recombinant DNA organisms.  In 1977, Karl Illmensee claims to have created mice with only one parent.  In 1978, David Rorvik releases a book, In His Image: The Cloning of a Man, which sparked a worldwide debate on cloning ethics.

History of Cloning  In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that live, human made organisms are patentable material.  In 1984, Steen Willadsen, a Danish scientist, reported that he had made a genetic copy of a lamb from early sheep embryo cells a process now known as "twinning.“ This method will eventually be used on cattle, pigs, goats, rabbits and rhesus monkeys.  In 1986, Steen Willadsen clones cattle from differentiated cells.  In 1986, First, Prather, and Eyestone clone a cow from embryo cells.

History of Cloning  In 1990, the Human Genome Project began, which aimed at sequencing the entire human genome.  In 1996, Dolly the sheep became the first animal cloned from adult cells; this was not announced until a year later.  In 1997, President Bill Clinton proposed a five year moratorium on cloning.

History of Cloning  In 1997, the same scientists who produced Dolly announced that they had produced a lamb with a human gene in every cell of its body using techniques similar to those used to produce Dolly.  In 1997, Richard Seed announced his plans to clone a human.  In 1998, Japanese scientists reported that they had cloned eight copies of a single cow, the third mammal to be cloned.

History of Cloning  In 1998, a hybrid embryo created from human leg cells and anucleated cow egg was created; it was not developed due to ethical issues.  In 2000, a Rhesus monkey was cloned.  In 2000, Britain became the first country to grant a patent for cloned early-stage human embryos. Geron Corporation, which received the patent, said that it did not have the intention of creating cloned humans.

History of Cloning  In 2000, the group that created Dolly the sheep announced that they cloned pigs; there was hope that pigs could be genetically engineered for use in human organ transplants.  In 2003, a mule and a horse were cloned.  In 2003, the FDA released a study and approved the public consumption of cloned meat.

Potential of Cloning  Can be used to prevent hunger and increase crop yield in Mexico, Latin America, and the rest of the world.  Can be used to treat human disease through the study and utility of stem cells.