Bumper transgenic plant crop
Although it may seem hard to believe, it's been almost 10 years since researchers showed that they could use gene transfer technology on plants. Since then the plant genetic engineers have taken great strides. With several dozen field trials already under way, they may soon achieve their original goal - the development of high-yielding plant varieties with enhanced resistance to herbicides, disease, or insects. So now the researchers are branching out, beginning to design plants with improved consumer appeal, such as tomatoes that hold up better to freezing, as well as creating plants that can serve as factories for pharmaceuticals and industrial oils, just as researchers are now attempting to use pigs to make human hemoglobin. Some of the plant varieties being developed include: tobacco plants, soybeans, tomatoes, and dry, navy and green beans.
- OSTI ID:
- 5826865
- Journal Information:
- Science (Washington, D.C.); (United States), Vol. 253:5015; ISSN 0036-8075
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Transgenic plants and animals: Altered organisms from recombinant DNA technology. July 1982-July 1989 (Citations from the Life Sciences Collection data base). Report for July 1982-July 1989
Ozone-herbicide interactions in crop plants