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Today I asked Monty Don a question

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Bags Wed 19-Dec-12 17:33:32

Today I asked Monty Don whether there really is a difference in principle between selective breeding in farming, which has happened ever since humans first started farming, and genetic engineering. My view is the difference is only one of scale, not of principle. The scales involved are time and size. GM is quicker than selective breeding. Selective breeding involves 'manipulating' whole chromosomes-worth of genetic characteristics over generations. GM involves manipulating individual genes.

Monty Don couldn't give me an answer.

But someone else recommended this book which is about the work of a married couple, one of whom is a plant geneticist, and one of whom is an organic farmer.

The reviews on the page the link takes you to are good. I might get a copy some time.

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Nanado Thu 20-Dec-12 15:20:47

I'm fascinated by studies involving monozygotic twins snce I personally came across a case where one twin developed a genetically inheritable condition and his identical twin didn't. As you know genes can be 'switched off' and in this instance something caused the dominant gene to be switched off so allowing the recessive trait to manifest itself. I suspect that we will soon discover the function of non genes in the same way that the 'secrets' of mitochondrial DNA is now being unraveled and the evidence linking somatic mutations with certain cancers, eg breast, colon, stomach, liver, and kidney tumors is being investigated. Fascinating, echoes of the 'seven daughters of Eve?

Enjoy your lecture on particle acceleration JessM. I'm a physicist, my subjects were Botany, Zoololgy, Chemistry and Maths.

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Nanado Thu 20-Dec-12 15:27:04

Sorry to get carried away but its one of my special interests - Mitochondrial haplogroups sunshine

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JessM Thu 20-Dec-12 17:44:54

Yes indeed. Far more subtleties in genetics than we used to think.
The particle acceleration lecture was very good. Young woman from the Rutherford.
Wearing a summer dress!!!!
I did zoology and psychology and recently enjoyed writing an ebook about the immune system. Lovely to get my head back into science having done a number of other things in the last 30 years. Writing a short one about the gut now.

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Nanado Thu 20-Dec-12 18:32:50

I must confess to a typo, that should have read I'm NOT a physicist.

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