Biotechnology

In the United States, there has been relatively little experimentation involving the insertion of genes from other species into human DNA. What is one reason for the limitations of these experiments?

• The subunits of human DNA are different from the DNA subunits of other species.

• Inserting foreign DNA into human DNA would require using completely new techniques.

• Human DNA always promotes human survival, so there is no need to insert foreign genes into it.

• There are many ethical questions to be answered before inserting foreign genes into human DNA.

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A farmer is considering the advantages of cloning a herd of cattle from a single cow. What is one advantage of a cloned herd?

• All cattle in the herd would have the most desired traits.

• All cattle in the herd would have more genetic variation.

• All cattle in the herd would have more resistance to diseases.

• All cattle in the herd would have much longer life spans.

Scientists have produced a genetically modified orange tree that is resistant to disease. Which of the following is the best example of a potential benefit to society that could result from this biotechnology?

• reduction in orange crops produced

• increase in orange crops produced

• increase in the cost of orange crop

• a change in the distribution of insects that pollinate orange flowers

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A great deal of information can now be obtained about the future health of individuals by examining the genetic makeup of their cells. There are concerns that this information could be used to deny an individual health insurance or employment. What do these concerns best illustrate?

• Scientific explanations are based on evidence collected mainly from a single source.

• Scientific inquiry involves the collection of information from a large number of sources.

• Acquiring too much knowledge about human genetics will discourage future research in this area of science.

• Values are essential to making ethical decisions when applying new research that adds to existing knowledge.

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It has been argued that the cases of seasonal infectious diseases such as malaria are higher in tropical countries that are subject to El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. Which factor supports this argument?

• El Niño disrupts breeding cycles for mosquito predators.

• El Niño often brings excessive rainfall to warm tropical latitudes.

• El Niño makes it more difficult to provide medicine to disease stricken countries.

• El Niño causes excessive dry weather in northern latitudes forcing disease-carrying insects to travel south.

Many species of bacteria have become resistant to antibiotics because antibiotics have been so widely used. Now, bacteria that used to be killed by antibiotics are more difficult to treat. What is the best way to proceed in dealing with this public health problem?

• Antibiotics should no longer be used.

• Antibiotics should be made available to anyone without a prescription.

• Antibiotics should only be prescribed to people with bacterial infections

• Anti-viral medications should now be used instead of antibiotics.

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Over you will see a diagram of an energy pyramid.

The energy pyramid is demonstrating what happens when chemicals are leaked into ecosystems. As you look at the energy pyramid what do you notice about the amount toxic chemicals in the food chain shown?

• the amount of DDT increase as you move up the energy pyramid

• the amount of DDT decrease as you move down the energy pyramid

• the amount of DDT varies within this energy pyramid

• the amount of DDT stays the same throughout the energy pyramid

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Mammoths pictured here are an extinct relative of the current elephants that are known today. Mammoth DNA has been discovered frozen in time with little breakdown of the DNA sequence. Recently scientists have been able to use gene sequencing to piece together fragments of extinct mammoth DNA and elephant DNA. Their work will be used to create a complete sequence of DNA that could be used in the cloning of a mammoth. In order to complete this task, researchers would need to insert the DNA into an embryo and place that embryo inside an Asian elephant in order to grow and develop. What would be an ethical concern associated with using an endangered Asian elephant to grow the embryo containing the cloned mammoth DNA?

• Cloning is a technology that is too new to be used in action without further research on the topic.

• The introduction of a new mammoth species would increase biodiversity for the already declining elephant population.

• Using gene sequencing to alter the DNA of an extinct organism could produce a new species of elephant completely different from the mammoth.

• Since the Asian elephant is already at risk for extinction, using this elephant to grow a mammoth instead of its own species could further lead to the decrease in the Asian elephant population.

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Scientists have inserted a gene that codes for resistance to a biodegradable weedkiller into a certain plant. Which of the following is most likely to occur when this gene is inserted?

• The plant will become able to produce chemicals to kill weeds around it.

• The plant will become able to produce chemicals to kill weeds around it.

• The plant will become able to convert the weedkiller into fertilizer.

• The plant is more likely to survive when exposed to the weedkiller.

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An estimated 73,000 cases of infection from E. coli bacteria in food are reported in the United States each year. Heat treatment has been the preferred way to kill the bacteria, which are often found in beef products. Recently, irradiation using electron beam technology has been used to treat ground beef. The irradiation process disrupts the genetic structure of the bacteria, either killing them or leaving them unable to reproduce.

What is one potential danger of irradiating food?

• The dead bacteria might remain in the food and cause illnesses.

• The nutrients in the foods might also be destroyed by the irradiation.

• The bacteria might grow stronger and become more toxic to humans.

• The food might heat up to unsafe levels during the irradiation process.