-Traditionally, selective breeding has been going on for centuries, but is it considered a form of genetic engineering?
- Is cross-breeding species a form of genetic engineering?
- What forms of genetic engineering will be included in a list of this kind?
Nonetheless, here is a brief history of genetic engineering:
Summary: During the early 1900s, scientists began mapping out and reproducing chromosomes for experimental purposes.
Modern genetic engineering first began in the late 1960s, early 1970s, as work with viruses, bacteria, and plasmids began.
Also in the 1970s, techniques for isolating, altering, and reintroducing genes into organisms were developed. Methods were created to alter the heredity of some genes in plants, animals, and microorganisms. Near the end of the 1970s, scientists began working on engineering hormones, such as insulin from recombinant DNA.
Bacterially produced insulin became the first approved, genetically engineered medicine in the early 1980s.
Research began on higher animals, mostly mammals, using lab mice as research subjects.
BC
1750 BC The Sumerians first brew beer, using yeast.
250 BC The ancient Greeks practice crop rotation to maximize on soil fertility.
100 BC Powdered chrysanthemums are used as an insecticide in China.
AD
1590 The first microscope is invented by Zacharias Jansen, a Dutch man, in order to increase magnification in eyeglasses.
1663 Cells are first described by Hooke in a piece of cork.
1675 Leeuwenhoek discovers bacteria and protozoa.
1797 Jenner vaccinates a child with a vaccine to protect from smallpox.
19th Century
1830 Proteins are discovered.
1833 The cell nucleus is discovered.
Pasteur begins working with yeast until he proves that they are living organisms.
1863 Gregor Mendel, in his study of peas, discovers that traits were transmitted from parents to offspring by discrete, independent units, later called genes. His observations lay the groundwork for the fiel
d of genetics.
1869 Miescher discovers DNA in trout sperm.
1877 A technique for staining and identifying bacteria is developed by Koch.
1878 The first centrifuge is developed by Laval. It is able to separate parts of genetic material.
1883 The first rabies vaccine is made.
1888 The chromosome is discovered. Chromosomes, organized structures made up of a strand of DNA binded and coiled around specific proteins and containing genes, are used when cells are replicated.
20th Century
1909 Genes are linked with hereditary disorders.
1911 The first cancer-causing virus is discovered. Cancer is the continuous, uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells.
1914 Microorganisms are used to treat sewage for the first time in Manchester, England.
1915 Bacterial viruses are discovered.
1927 Muller discovers that X-rays can cause mutations.
1928 Fleming discovers penicillin, the first ever antibiotic in the world, a major breakthrough.
1941 The term "genetic engineering" is first used by a Danish scientist.
1942 The electron microscope is used to examine a bacteriophage- a virus that infects bacteria.
1943 Avery demonstrates that DNA is the "transforming factor" and is the material of genes.
1951 McClintock discovers transposable genes, or "jumping genes," in corn. These genes can travel to different segments in an organism's genome.
1953 Very Important! James Watson, Francis Crick, and Rosalind Franklin reveal the three-dimensional, double helical structure of DNA.
1955 An enzyme involved in the synthesis of a nucleic acid is isolated for the first time.
1957 Sickle cell anemia (decrease in normal amount of red blood cells or hemoglobin in blood) is shown to occur due to a change of a single amino acid. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and serve a critical function in an organism's metabolism.
1960 Hybrid DNA molecules are created.
Messenger RNA and its role in protein creation is found.
1968 Werner Arber discovers the first restriction enzymes. This opens up a door to countless possibilities in genetic engineering.
1972 The DNA composition of humans is found to be 99% similar to that of chimpanzees and gorillas.
1973 Stanley N. Cohen Cohen and Herbert W. Boyer perform the first successful recombinant DNA experiment, using bacterial genes. This sets the framework for modern genetic engineering.
1975 New staining techniques are developed for detecting and identifying DNA sequences.
1976 The tools of recombinant DNA are first applied to a human inherited disorder.
1979 The first identical antibodies are produced.
1982 Humulin, Genentech's synthetic human insulin drug produced by genetically engineered bacteria for the treatment of diabetes, is the first biotech drug to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Efficient methods are developed to synthesize double-stranded DNA from single-strand cloned DNA, with minimal loss of genetic sequencing information.
1984 The DNA fingerprinting technique is developed.
The first genetically engineered vaccine is developed.
1985 Fully active murine genes (from a common mouse) are cloned in E. coli.
1986 The first field tests of genetically engineered tobacco are conducted.
1988 The Human Genome Project begins in the US.
The first patent on a genetically modified life form is issued. The animal is the OncoMouse, specially modified for cancer research.
1990 The first federally approved gene therapy treatment is performed successfully on a 4-yearold girl suffering from severe immunodeficiency disease, making her very susceptible to other infectious diseases.
The FDA declares that genetically engineered foods are "not inherently dangerous" and do not require special regulations.
1994 The first breast cancer gene is discovered.
Calgene's "FlAVR SAVR" tomato, engineered to have a longer shelf life", is approved for sale in the US.
The first full gene sequence of a living organism other than a virus is completed .
1996 The Biogen company builds a $50 million plant in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, to manufacture many recombinant DNA drugs.
Scottish scientists led by Ian Wilmut clone identical lambs from early embryonic sheep.This eventually produces Dolly, the sheep.
1997 A group of Oregon researchers claims to have cloned two Rhesus monkeys.
A new DNA technique which uses DNA computer chips and is special program is created, providing a new tool in the search for disease-causing genes.
The USDA amends its regulations for genetically engineered plants. If a producer can prove their plants will have no negative effects on the environment, they can apply and be accepted and approved for non-regulatory status.
1998 Hawaiian scientists clone three generations of mice from nuclei of adult ovarian (egg) cells.
Human skin is produced in vitro (outside of the body).
Embryonic stem cells are used to regenerate tissue and repair damaged organs.
The first complete animal genome for the elegans worm is sequenced.
1998 The change of demographics and public opinion in Europe brings biotech food into the spotlight.
21st Century
2000 Pigs are cloned by researchers, in hopes of producing organs for human transplant.
The 2.18 million base pairs (guanine- cytosine, thymine- adenine; connected by hydrogen bonds) of the most common cause of bacterial meningitis are identified.
2001 The sequence of the human genome is deciphered and published in Science and Nature, making it possible for researchers all over the world to begin developing treatments.
2002 Scientists complete the draft sequence of the most important pathogen (germ that causes negative effects) of rice, a fungus that destroys enough rice to feed 60 million people annually. By using an understanding of the genomes of the fungus and rice, scientists explain the molecular basis of the interactions between the plant and pathogen begin working on ways to rectify the problem.
2003 Dolly, the cloned sheep that became famous in 1997, is euthanized (put down) after developing progressive lung disease. Dolly was the first successful clone of a mammal in history.
Glofish, the first publicly available genetically modified pets, go on sale. To create these Glofish, ordinary zebrafish are injected with green fluorouscent protein, extracted from jellyfish, producing bright green biolumiscence.
Interesting fact -The word "biology" first appeared in 1802.
0 comments:
Post a Comment