Question

Bt toxin gene has been cloned from the bacteria and expressed in plants to provide resistance to insects without the need for insecticides. Examples of such plants are:-
(A)Cotton and corn
(B)Rice and potato
(C)Tomato and soybean
(D)All of these.

Answer 1

Hint: Bt toxin is used as an insecticide to prevent the plant from an insect. It can be used as an insecticide in almost all of the plants. So, there are no such restrictions to plants that can be genetically modified using the Bt toxin gene.

Complete answer:
First Bt cotton varieties were successfully developed by Punjab Agricultural University. Bt stands for Bacillus thuringiensis. Its genes are used to make many plants genetically modified. There are many advantages of Bt modified crops as it gets protected from an insect. Decrease soil pollution which was usually caused by synthetic pesticides. But as everything has its pros and cons, there are disadvantages of Bt toxin crops too. It is costlier than normal crops and in the future, pests may become resistant to the toxins produced by these crops and may lead to a decrease in crop production.
So, the correct answer is ‘ All of these’.

Additional Information: Bt toxin cannot cause any harmful effects on humans. Even Bacillus thuringiensis cannot harm itself from toxin as the toxin which is present is in an inactive form. It gets activated in the presence of alkaline ph of the gut of the insect. This active toxin causes swelling and lysis of epithelial cells and eventually leads to the death of the insect.

Note: Bt toxin cannot cause any harmful effects on humans. Even Bacillus thuringiensis cannot harm itself from toxin as the toxin which is present is in an inactive form. It gets activated in the presence of alkaline ph of the gut of the insect. This active toxin causes swelling and lysis of epithelial cells and eventually leads to the death of the insect.