Difference between revisions of "Team:UNIK Copenhagen/Safety"

Revision as of 20:08, 17 September 2015

How safe Are We?

There is always a risk with everything we do, but our duty is to make it as small as possible. We have transformed Physcomitrella Patens with genes from grapes and a worm. The Resveratrol gene from grapes would most likely not be benificial for the wildtype moss if it was released back into the wild. The anti-freeze protein, on the other hand,would hopefully improve the moss capacity to survive colder temperature. We do not know the implication the release of the modified moss could have on the natural ecosystem. We have therefore taken certain precautions in the lab to avoid this worst case scenario as we are working with a GMO after all. To work with GMO there is specific requirements to the laboratory depending on the risk pose by the organisms you work with. As we work with a non-pathogenic plant, we were able to conduct our research in a GMO laboratory of level 1.

Can It Be Misused by People?

As the function we are striving for is improving it for Mars, it would be difficult to find other uses for this organism compared to the benefit of so many others. If we really did improve the moss' survivability in cold areas, it might be able to grow in new habitats on Earth, if sown there intentionally, but that should not pose a great threat to humanity.

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-<h2>How safe are we?</h2>
+<h2>How safe Are We?</h2>
 There is always a risk with everything we do, but our duty is to make it as small as possible. We have transformed Physcomitrella Patens with genes from grapes and a worm.
-The resveratrol gene from grapes would most likely not be benifical for the wildtype moss if it was released back into wild. The anti-freeze protein, on the other hand,would hopefully improve the moss capacity to survive colder temperature. We do not know the result the release of this altared moss could have to the natural ecosystem so have taken certain precations in the lab to avoid this worst case scenario as we are working with a GMO after all. To work with GMO there is all specific requirements to the laboratory  depend in the risk the organisms you work with pose. As we work with a non-pathogenic plant, we were able to conduct our research in a GMO laboratory of level 1.
+The Resveratrol gene from grapes would most likely not be benificial for the wildtype moss if it was released back into the wild. The anti-freeze protein, on the other hand,would hopefully improve the moss capacity to survive colder temperature. We do not know the implication the release of the modified moss could have on the natural ecosystem. We have therefore taken certain precautions in the lab to avoid this worst case scenario as we are working with a GMO after all. To work with GMO there is specific requirements to the laboratory depending on the risk pose by the organisms you work with. As we work with a non-pathogenic plant, we were able to conduct our research in a GMO laboratory of level 1.
-<h2>Can it be misused by people?</h2>
+<h2>Can It Be Misused by People?</h2>
-As the function we are striving for is improving it for Mars, it would be difficult to find other uses for this organism compared to the benefit of so many others. If we really did improve the moss' survivability in cold areas, it might be able to grow in new habitats here on earth, if sown there intentionally, but that should not pose a great threat to humanity.
+As the function we are striving for is improving it for Mars, it would be difficult to find other uses for this organism compared to the benefit of so many others. If we really did improve the moss' survivability in cold areas, it might be able to grow in new habitats on Earth, if sown there intentionally, but that should not pose a great threat to humanity.
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