How do transgenic crops resist pests and weed killers?
Have you heard about the new transgenic crops? Some of them can resist weed killing chemicals, and some are resistant to insect pests. The secret of transgenic crops is that they contain genes taken from other life forms. For example, a new kind of corn contains a gene taken from a bacterium that normally lives inside insects, killing them. The bacterial gene creates a protein that poisons the insects, and when it is present in the corn plant it creates the same protein, which kills any insects that try to eat it. Transgenic crops are being tested all around the world, but many people are worried about the results. There are several ways that growing such crops might lead to ecological problems, and no one knows what the real risks are.
