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Genetically Engineered Crops
GE Crops Helping With Real-World Problems
TIMELINE
Charles Darwin, who is considered the father of evolution, observed crossbreeding birds. Through his experiment, he saw the "survival of the fittest," which meant the birds with the best traits survived and continued to breed with other "fit" birds. This created the idea of artificial selection for desirable traits. T.1 T.2
James Watson and Francis Crick discovered the double helix, which was the twisted-ladder structure of DNA. T.4
Asilomar conference was held in California and it set the guidelines for GE technology. T.11
The Environmental Protection Agency approves of altered corn, cotton, and potatoes that produce insecticides. T.9
In North America, high-oleic acid soybeans were available for commercial use. This causes the oils to go under less processing and less trans fat. T.22
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Gregor Mendel, the father of modern genetics and heredity, conducted hybridization experiments with pea plans. He discovered that specific traits were transmitted from parent to offspring through multiple generations. This was combined with Darwin's thoughts to create the foundation of plant breeding. T.3
Herbert Boyer and Stanley Cohen created the first successful recombinant DNA organism. They constructed an organism that put together and duplicated genetic information from different species.
T.5 T.6
FLAVR SAVR tomato was the first commercialized GE crop and was made by the biotechnology company, Celgene. The tomato was modified to not soften after harvest and stay firm. T.7 T.8
Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyer created Golden Rice and it was modified to produce beta-carotene, which turned to vitamin A when metabolized. T.10
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