Question

The controversy regarding the use of Bt Brinjal is
(A) The growth contaminated the ground water
(B) Bt brinjal had harmful effects on the uterus
(C) Bt Brinjal is sterile, no further reproduction takes place
(D) It induces an antibiotic resistance to humans

Answer 1

Hint:Genetically modified crops are plants that are modified using genetic engineering and are now used for agricultural purposes. It involves the transfer of specific traits with the help of specific genes between different species under laboratory condition. GM crops are also known as transgenic crops.

Complete answer:
Bt Brinjal is a genetically modified brinjal, also called as the transgenic brinjal, created by the insertion of Cry1Ac gene, which is a crystal protein gene from a bacteria called Bacillus thuringiensi, into the genome of brinjal. This transfer of genes is accomplished by Agrobacterium mediated genetic transformation.
Bt Brinjal is resistant against lepidopteran insects. The resistance is due to the Cry1Ac gene. When a pest’s larvae feed on Bt brinjal, the Cry1Ac protein also gets ingested along with the plant tissue. Insect gut has an alkaline pH, in which the crystal protein gets solubilised and gets activated by gut proteases. This activated Bt protein then binds to specific receptors on the insect gut membrane, resulting in pore formation, leading to its death.
Bt Brinjal was first seen as an advantage to the farmers, as it had increased the yield of brinjal crops. As it is pest resistant, hence it requires very less pesticide sprays leading to minimise use of pesticides. But, later studies show that Bt brinjal produces a protein in the vegetable cells that induces antibiotic resistance and therefore pose major health concerns.
So, the correct answer is Option (D) - It induces an antibiotic resistance to humans.

Note: There are many other transgenic crops other than Bt Brinjal, that were created using genetic engineering. These include Bt Cotton, Bt Corn and many more. Bt cotton is resistant to bollworm which causes an increase in the yield of cotton but Bt Cotton is costlier than normal cotton. Likewise, Bt corn also involves less usage of pesticide, leading to its increased yield and good income for farmers