DNA Technologies

Emily Han

1. The Canadian GMO regulations state that

I think that these guidelines are adequate to a certain extent. They make sure there are
warnings about the effects the GMO have although, it does not cover specific restrictions on the
harm of organisms.
More modifications indicating environmental issues could be put in as it does not mention much
about the harm to the environment when using GMO’s. Also, I would modify the guidelines and
its health related regulations. The Canadian GMO regulations state that there are to be health
concern warnings on the labels, but I think there should be a certain restriction that doesn’t
allow the production of very harmful GMO’s. There should also be a restriction for GMO’s that
cause more harmful effects than benefits (for example, a GMO which causes side effects on
other plants and herbicides used, which affects the food chain and creates a chain of negative
effects). As for the labelling, more modifications could be added to indicate what specific kind of
side effects the GMO may cause rather than just a warning label to let the consumers know
what they are eating.

2. Electrophoresis
 Used to separate macromolecules (DNA, RNA, proteins)
 Fragments are separated according to size and its charge
 DNA molecules are pulled through gel with an electric field (DNA is negatively charged)
 Results in series of band in which DNA molecules are separated by size (smaller
molecules further away from start of gel)
 Electrophoresis is used for forensics, paternity testing, to look for evolutionary
relationships, and test for genes associated with a particular disease.

Southern Blotting

 This technique breaks DNA into fragments using a restriction enzyme, runs them onto a
gel, and separated by electrophoresis according to size. The DNA fragments are
transferred onto a membrane, filtered, and the fragment is detected by probe
hybridization.
 Designed to locate particular sequence of DNA within a complex mixture
 Useful for identifying DNA sequences that appears only once or twice in the genome

Northern Blotting

 Very similar to Southern Blotting but detects RNA in the sample to study gene
expression instead of DNA.
 In blotting, hybridization is key; it is the process of forming double-stranded DNA/RNA
molecules between a single-stranded DNA probe and a single-stranded target RNA.
 mRNA are extracted from cells and separated by electrophoresis, filtered from gel to
membrane, and hybridized.
 Technique helps determine which type of protein is produced by observing mRNA
 Helps detect function of unknown proteins
3. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is used to amplify a single/multiple copies of DNA in order to
find out the individual’s genetic fingerprint.
It should be necessary to supply the police with DNA as it would be an un-biased method of
genetically finding the truth and also aiding as evidence. But, the fingerprint information should
only be used as evidence that helps to reassure and make clear of the truth after having a
decision made by a judge in court (and hearing from the criminal). The technology itself
shouldn’t be able to overturn convictions as there may be more to a story than just genetic
proof.