Genetically modified plant

Plant genomes can be engineered by physical methods or by use of Agrobacterium for the delivery of sequences hosted in T-DNA binary vectors.

Its small genome and short life cycle makes it easy to manipulate and it contains many homologs to important crop species.

[9] Carnations were released in 1997, with the most popular genetically modified organism, a blue rose (actually lavender or mauve) created in 2004.

[8] As well as increasing aesthetic value there are plans to develop ornamentals that use less water or are resistant to the cold, which would allow them to be grown outside their natural environments.

Third generation genetically modified crops can be used for non-food purposes, including the production of pharmaceutical agents, biofuels, and other industrially useful goods, as well as for bioremediation.

GM crops contribute by improving harvests through reducing insect pressure, increasing nutrient value and tolerating different abiotic stresses.

[22] The only gene commercially used to provide insect protection that does not originate from B. thuringiensis is the Cowpea trypsin inhibitor (CpTI).

[23][24] Less than one percent of GM crops contained other traits, which include providing virus resistance, delaying senescence, modifying flower colour and altering the plants composition.

[26] a deficiency which each year is estimated to kill 670,000 children under the age of 5[27] and cause an additional 500,000 cases of irreversible childhood blindness.

[33][34] Biopharmaceuticals produced include cytokines, hormones, antibodies, enzymes and vaccines, most of which are accumulated in the plant seeds.

[38] Therapeutics have been cultured in transgenic carrot and tobacco cells,[39] including a drug treatment for Gaucher's disease.

Being stored in plants reduces the long-term cost as they can be disseminated without the need for cold storage, do not need to be purified, and have long term stability.

Also being housed within plant cells provides some protection from the gut acids upon digestion; the cost of developing, regulating and containing transgenic plants is high, leading to most current plant-based vaccine development being applied to veterinary medicine, where the controls are not as strict.