Genetic engineering is the process of manually adding new DNA to an organism.The goal is to add one or more new traits that are not already found in that organism.DNA is a molecule found in the nucleus of every cell and is made up of 4 sub-units represented by the letters.The order of these sub-units in the DNA strand holds a code of information for the cell.The genetic language uses 4 letters to spell out the instructions for how to make the proteins an organism will need to grow and live.Small segments of DNA are called genes.Each genes holds the instructions for how to produce a single protein.An organism may have thousands of genes.The set of all genes in an organism is called genome.
Proteins do the work in cells.They can be part of structures (such as cell walls and organelles). They can regulate reactions that take place in the cell or they can serve as enzymes,which speed-up reactions.Everything you see in an organisms is either made of proteins or the result of a protein action.DNA is the genetic code means the same thing in all organisms.This characteristic is critical to the success of genetic engineering.When a gene for a desirable trait is taken from one organism and inserted into another,it gives the 'recipient' organism the ability to express that same trait.Genetic engineering,also called transformation,works by physically removing a gene from organism and inserting it into another,giving it the ability to express the trait encoded by that gene.
Genetic engineering manually moves genes from one organism to another while traditional breeding moves genes through mating, or crossing,the organisms in hopes of obtaining oof spring with the desired combination of traits.Traditional breeding is effective in improving traits,however, when compared with genetic engineering , it does have disadvantages.Since breeding relies on the ability to mate two organisms to move genes,trait improvement is basically limited to those traits that already exist within that species.Genetic engineering,on the other hand,physically removes the genes from one organism and places them into the other.This eliminates the need for mating and allows the movement of genes between organisms of any species.Therefore,the potential traits that can be used are virtually unlimited.Breeding is also less precise than genetic engineering.In breeding,half of the genes from each parent are passed on to the offspring.This may include many undesirable genes for traits tha are not wanted in the new organism.However,genetic engineering allow for the movement of a single or a few genes.
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