Lesson Plan

Lesson Preview | Objectives

Lesson Preview

For thousands of years humans have been using selective breeding.  In selective breeding, organisms with desirable characteristics mate. The benefits are larger, better tasting and more colorful fruits, chickens that produce more eggs, or plants and animals resisting diseases.

Today, scientists have the ability to change the genes. This way they can artificially produce offspring with the desired traits. This new science, called genetic engineering, combines our knowledge from physics, math, and genetics. In this lesson, we will discover the basics of this new area.

Objectives

After studying this lesson, you will know:

•  DNA, RNA and protein have different functions and structures.
   
• How information goes from the DNA to the RNA.
   
• What the role is of biotechnology or genetic engineering in creating biomedical and agricultural products.
   
• DNA technology can construct recombinant DNA molecules.
   
• DNA can get into bacterial cells. Then, the DNA alters the cells' genetic make-up and produces new protein.

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B. J. Subbiondo © 2005