Agricultural biotechnology

Agricultural biotechnology uses biological techniques, including genetic engineering and molecular breeding, to develop crops, livestock, and agricultural processes.

Bt crops: Crops engineered to produce insecticidal proteins derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. They show how genetic engineering can give crops targeted protection against insect pests.
Genetic engineering: The deliberate alteration of an organism's genetic material using laboratory techniques. It is one major route for introducing traits into agricultural organisms.
Conventional plant breeding: The development of crop varieties through crossing and selection across generations. It can produce similar goals through reproduction and selection rather than direct molecular intervention.
Herbicide resistance: The inherited ability of a weed or other organism to survive exposure to a herbicide. Herbicide-tolerant crops can change weed-control practices and selection pressures.
Gregor Mendel: A nineteenth-century scientist whose pea-plant experiments established basic principles of inheritance. His laws of inheritance underpin modern approaches to breeding agricultural organisms.
Golden rice: Rice engineered to produce beta-carotene in its grain, a precursor of vitamin A. It illustrates biotechnology directed at improving the nutritional content of a staple crop.
CRISPR gene editing: A genome-editing method that uses CRISPR-associated proteins and guide RNA to target DNA sequences. It enables precise changes to crop and livestock genomes.
Organic farming: A farming system that follows standards restricting many synthetic inputs and genetic engineering. Its certification rules often exclude genetically engineered crops, despite using some biological methods.
Gene flow: The movement of genes between populations through reproduction or other transfer. Pollen-mediated gene flow can move engineered traits into nearby crops or wild relatives.
Recombinant DNA: DNA molecules formed by joining genetic sequences from different sources. Its development made transfer of selected genes between organisms possible.

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