Biotechnology in plant science allows for precise genetic changes to plants to introduce beneficial traits like pest and disease resistance. Crops engineered with traits like Bt toxin production can increase yields by reducing losses to pests. The Bt toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis bacteria is toxic to certain insects but safe for humans. Major Bt crops include corn and cotton engineered to resist key pest insects through Bt toxin production. Herbicide tolerant crops are also developed to resist non-selective herbicides and simplify weed control. Genetic engineering techniques further aim to enhance stress tolerance of crops.

1. Biotechnology In
Plant
Science
Prepared by: Group
1

2. LEARNING OUTCOMES
Explain why insect control
is so important in plant
production.
01 02
List crops that have been
engineered to contain the
BT gene.

3. BIOTECHNOLOGY IN PLANT
SCIENCE
 Biotechnology in Plant Science allows plant breeders to make precise genetic changes
to place beneficial traits – such as pest resistance, disease resistance or herbicide
tolerance into plants.
 Biotech crops can make farming more profitable by increasing crop quality and may in
some cases increase yields. The use of some of these crops can simplify work and
improve safety for farmers. This allows farmers to spend less of their time managing their
crops and more time on other profitable activities.
 Application of Biotechnology in Plant Science involves scientific techniques such as
Genetically Modified Organisms, Bt Cotton, Pest Resistant Plants, etc. It helps in
modifying plants, animals, and microorganisms and improve their agricultural productivity.

4. What is the purpose of Biotechnology in
Plant Science? 1. Upgrade selective breeding
and genetic engineering to
produce edible, farmable plants
that is responsible for the
abundant food supply we enjoy
today.
2. It is used to maintain healthy
plants, optimize crop yields, and
minimize pesticide usage.
3. Used to adapt plants for specific
needs or opportunities.

5. INSECT CONTROL
TROUGH
BIOTECHNOLOGY
 Insect control is a method of controlling insect population,
such as by chemical, biological, or other means.
 It is estimated that 40 percent of the worlds food supply is lost
to pests, diseases, and spoilage.
 The use of pesticides or also called systemics, were very
effective for killing insects.
 Systemic pesticides are water-soluble, so they easily move
throughout a plant as it absorbs water and transports it to its
tissues. The use of pesticide may require withdrawal period.
 Withdrawal period is the time, from the application of the
pesticide until harvest required to render the produce safe to
eat.

7. The Sterile Insect Technique
The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is the first insect pest control method that uses genetics. It is
most simply described as a form of insect birth control that is carried out on an area-wide basis.
 These sterile male flies are then released by air over infested areas, where they mate with wild
females. If the sterile males vastly outnumber the fertile wild males, the wild fly population
quickly dies out. The proportion of infertile males to fertile wild males must be at least 10:1.
 The SIT involves mass breeding huge quantities of target insects in a "factory" and sterilizing the
males by exposing them to low doses of radiation

8.  The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is a form of insect birth control. The process involves
rearing large quantities of sterilized male mosquitoes in dedicated facilities, and then releasing
them to mate with females in the wild. As they do not produce any offspring, the insect
population declines over time.
 During the late 1950s to the 1970s, SIT was used to control the screw-worm population in the
US. ... The technique has been a boon in protecting the agricultural products to feed the world's
human population.
 The guidance on using the technique to control diseases in humans recommends adopting a
phased approach that allows time to test the efficacy of the sterilized insects.
 The Sterile Insect Technique was first developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and
has been used successfully to target insect pests that attack crops and livestock, such as the
Mediterranean fruit fly and the New World screwworm fly. It is currently in use globally in the
agriculture sector on six continents.
Why is Sterile Insect Technique important?

9. What is BT?
 Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, is a common soil bacterium whose genome
contains genes for several proteins toxic to insects. For decades, Bt has been
sprayed on fields as an organic pesticide; several major pests of corn that
are difficult and expensive to control with chemical insecticides are
susceptible to Bt.
 They are a group of soil microbes that are used to control certain insect
pests. Each type of Bt makes a unique protein that is toxic to some insects,
but not all. Some plants, such as corn, have been genetically engineered to
protect themselves by making their own Bt proteins.
 Bt gene was discovered by Ernst Berliner.
 First discovered in 1911 in Japan, and has revolutionized how we stop
insects from eating our crops.
 For over fifty years, Bt has been applied directly to a variety of agricultural
crops and plants in home gardens as a living pesticide to control insect
pests.

10. Insect Resistant Plants
 Biotechnology helps for the development of genetically altered crops that have built-
in resistance to insects.
 Bacillus thuringiensis (commonly know as Bt) was effective in killing insects.
 The soil-borne bacterium was first discovered in 1911 when scientist realized that
the toxins secreted by these microorganisms disrupt the digestive process of insects.
 Insect-resistant crops have been one of the major successes of applying plant genetic
engineering technology to agriculture; cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) resistant to
lepidopteran larvae (caterpillars) and maize (Zea mays) resistant to both
lepidopteran and coleopteran larvae (rootworms) have become widely used in global
agriculture and have led to reductions in pesticide usage and lower production costs.

11. BT Toxins
 Bt is also used for the reduction of toxins called mycotoxins.
 Mycotoxins are very potent poisons that produced by a fungus that grows on grains
or other feedstuffs.
 Mycotoxin contamination levels in maize kernels are controlled by a complex set of
factors including insect pressure, fungal inoculum potential, and environmental
conditions that are difficult to predict. Methods are becoming available to control
mycotoxin-producing fungi in preharvest crops, including Bt expression, biocontrol,
and host plant resistance.

12. IS BT Toxin Harmful?
 Bt is a bacterium that is not toxic to humans or other mammals but is toxic to certain
insects when ingested. Bt works as an insecticide by producing a crystal-shaped protein
(Cry toxin) that specifically kills certain insects.
 The crystal, referred to as Cry toxin (cry from crystal), insecticidal crystal protein,
parasporal body, crystalline inclusion, or delta endotoxin, is a protein formed during
sporulation in Bt strains and aggregate to form crystals. Such Cry toxins are toxic to
specific species of insects belonging to Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera,
and Nematoda. They are harmless to human, vertebrates, and natural enemies of
insects.
 The Cyt toxins are also formed during sporulation and occur within the parasporal body
but in a separate inclusion. They share no significant amino acid sequence identity with
Cry toxins and are thus unrelated.

13. How plants are made to produce Cry toxin?

14. What are the benefits of BT Gene?
• Advantages of this genus include the ability to grow rapidly, tolerate a
wide range of physiological conditions and the ability to sporulate.
• It helps in improving the crop yield, thereby, raising the farmer’s
income. This results in increased farm production.
• They help in controlling soil pollution as the use of synthetic pesticides
is reduced.
• Bt crops help in protecting beneficial insects.
• It can easily feed an increasing population due to increased yields of
BT crops in a short time.
• It leads to the production of disease-free crops owing to the reduction
of pesticides.
• It leads to more productivity in a small area of land.

15. What are BT Crops?
 Crops that have been genetically engineered to produce Cry toxins are often described
with the prefix “Bt” (such as Bt-cotton, Bt-corn, Bt-peanuts, Bt-potatoes, Bt-soybeans, Bt-
tomatoes, etc.).
 Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crops are plants genetically engineered (modified) to
contain the endospore (or crystal) toxins of the bacterium, Bt to be resistant to certain
insect pests.
 In 1995, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in USA approved the commercial
production and distribution of the Bt crops: corn, cotton, potato, and tobacco.
 Currently, the most common Bt crops are corn and cotton.
 The Bt cotton variety is genetically transformed with the Bt gene to protect the plants
from bollworm, a major pest of cotton.
 Another type of Bt crops is Bt brinjal. It is also produced by genetic transformation of a
crystal protein gene cry 1 Ac from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, and was
developed to provide resistance against lepidopteron insects.

16. What are common Bt products?
 Bt is available at most gardening stores as a natural pesticide for use in home
gardens.
 Bt products containing a subspecies known as BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis
Israelensis) can be used to control pest flies like mosquitoes and black flies.
 It is sold as a pellet that can be dissolved in open water containers to kill fly larvae.
 Organic and conventional produce is often preventatively sprayed with Bt to control
targeted pests.
 Bt is considered an environmentally friendly insecticide because it is already
present in the soil and Cry toxins are specific to particular insect groups.

17. THANK YOU
FOR
LISTENING!!

18. HERBICIDE
RESISTANT
PLANTS

19. LEARNING OUTCOMES
Explain why insect control
is so important in plant
production.
Describe the
problems caused
by weeds in crops.
01
03
02
04
Describe how crops can
be made tolerant of
climatic conditions and
used in biofuels
production through
genetic engineering.
List crops that have been
engineered to contain the
BT gene.

20. Herbicide Resistant Plants
 Herbicide resistance is the inherited ability of an individual plant to survive a herbicide
application that would kill a normal population of the same species. Herbicide resistance
does not equate to poor performance of a herbicide.
 Herbicide tolerant crops are designed to tolerate specific broad-spectrum herbicides,
which kill the surrounding weeds, but leave the cultivated crop intact.
 Resistant weeds can often survive application of herbicide at rates that are much greater
than the recommended rate. Weeds are considered agricultural pests in addition to
insects and disease organisms because they cause impurities in agricultural products.
 For many years, humans battled weeds using only mechanical means such as hoe and a
plow.

21. The Use of Herbicide
 Herbicides are chemicals used to manipulate or control undesirable vegetation.
 Herbicide application occurs most frequently in row-crop farming, where they are
applied before or during planting to maximize crop productivity by minimizing other
vegetation. The chemical herbicides were developed that were very effective in killing
weeds.
 Herbicides play a vital role in integrated weed management programs. Knowledge of the
mechanisms and activity of herbicides will improve the impact and sustainability of
herbicides as a weed management tactic.
 There are two type of herbicides, nonselective herbicides and selective herbicides.

22. Selective Herbicide vs Nonselective Herbicide
Nonselective
Herbicide
Selective
Herbicide
• Selective Herbicide is designed to
kill certain weeds or types of
weeds. For example, chemicals that
kill only broadleaf plants will not kill
grasses and herbicides designed to
kill grasses may not kill broadleaf.
• Selective herbicides work by
targeting specific metabolic
processes that plants rely on to
survive.
• Nonselective Herbicide or
Knockdown Herbicides are
chemicals that kill all plants when
they are applied to and are most often
used where all vegetation is to be
killed.
• Knockdown herbicides effectively kill
weeds and are cost-effective.
• Use of knockdown herbicides can
improve the timeliness of sowing. Use
of knockdown herbicides rather than
cultivation will reduce the risk of
erosion, improve soil structure and
improve plant available soil water
content.

23. Advantages Disadvantages
Selective Herbicide • Not all plants have the same
metabolic processes, so by using a
selective herbicide that is safe for
your lawn, you can target and
eliminate specific weeds without
risking your lawn.
• It is formulated to control specific
weeds or weed categories.
• It is a material that is toxic to some
plant species but less toxic to others.
They are toxic to a wide variety of
plant species, and not just the weeds.
Nonselective Herbicide • Knockdown herbicides effectively kill
weeds and are cost-effective.
• Use of knockdown herbicides can
improve the timeliness of sowing.
• Use of knockdown herbicides rather
than cultivation will reduce the risk of
erosion, improve soil structure and
improve plant available soil water
content.
• Non-selective herbicides, such as
glyphosate, are highly damaging to all
plants, so it is important to only apply
when weather conditions are suitable
as the gusty wind can cause spray
drift, harming non-target plants and
endangering sensitive ecosystems.
Selective Herbicide vs Nonselective Herbicide

24. THE USE OF ROUND UP
HERBICIDE
 There are types of nonselective herbicides used in pest control. One of those types
is the Round Up Herbicide.
 Monsanto Corporation developed a nonselective herbicide called Roundup.
 Roundup herbicide is very effective at killing a wide variety of unwanted
vegetation, is relatively inexpensive and environmentally safe.
 It uses a substance called glyphosate.

25. What is Glyphosate?
 Glyphosate is a chemical substance that works by stopping the action of an enzyme
(EPSP synthase) which serves a vital role in the production of certain amino acids
that are essential to plants.
 It is a non-selective herbicide, meaning it will kill most plants. It prevents the plants
from making certain proteins that are needed for plant growth.
 The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has rated Round Up Herbicide as
“essentially nontoxic”. EPA scientists performed an independent evaluation of
available data for glyphosate and found: No risks of concern to human health from
current uses of glyphosate. Glyphosate products used according to label directions do
not result in risks to children or adults.

26. Climatic Tolerance
 Green Revolution includes the development of crop varieties that could be grown in specific
climate regions. This was a period of technology transfer initiatives that saw greatly
increased crop yields and agricultural production which includes, stress tolerant genes.
 Stress tolerance genes have been successfully engineered into crop plants in order to
enhance plant growth and yields.
 By studying the biology of salt marsh plants and those that are salt loving or halophytes,
researchers have been identified genes that help salt-sensitive crops survive highly saline
soil conditions.
 Genetic engineering is already being used to help organisms adapt to rapidly changing
climates. Researchers are developing strains of rice, maize and wheat capable of
withstanding longer droughts and wetter monsoon seasons.

27. Climatic Tolerance and Use Efficiencies
 Nutrient use efficiency - shows the ability of crops to take up and utilize nutrients for
maximum yields. It depends on the plant’s ability to take up nutrients efficiently from the
soil, but also depends on internal transport, storage and remobilization of nutrients.
 Water use efficiency (WUE)- is defined as the amount of carbon assimilated as biomass or
grain produced per unit of water used by the crop. It is used in many developing countries
such as lack of irrigation systems and unpredictable rainfall.
 Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) - used for lesser chemical fertilizer supply in crops
development. It is defined as the ratio of the crop nitrogen uptake, to the total input of
nitrogen fertilizer. It can also be defined more broadly as the ratio, of crop nitrogen uptake,
to available soil which would include applied fertilizer, plus residual mineral in the soil.

28. OTHER USES OF PLANT
BIOTECHNOLOGY
 Agronomic traits - the trait that can increase crop yields or make crops less expensive to
grow.
 Agronomic crops are those that occupy large acreage, and are the bases of the world's food
and fiber production systems, often mechanized.
 Examples are wheat, rice, corn, soybean, alfalfa and forage crops, beans, sugar beets,
canola, and cotton.
 Quality traits - the trait that can improve crop value to the consumer whether the crops will
be used to feed people or livestock.
 Consumer quality traits, such as flavour, nutritional value, colour and firmness are becoming
increasingly important in current plant breeding programs. Advances in X-omics technologies
make it possible to study these complex, multifactorial traits.

29. OTHER USES OF PLANT
BIOTECHNOLOGY
 Plant biomass is a highly abundant renewable resource that can be converted into several
types of high-value-added products, including chemicals, biofuels and advanced materials.
 In the last few decades, an increasing number of biomass species and processing techniques
have been developed to enhance the application of plant biomass followed by the industrial
application of some of the products, during which varied technologies have been
successfully developed.
 Plants and algae may also be engineered to produce oils that may be used as biodiesel.
 Ethanol made from crop residues or biomass called cellulosic ethanol.

30. OTHER USES OF PLANT
BIOTECHNOLOGY
 Using genetically modified crop plants or plant cell cultures, it is possible to produce a number
of useful proteins and oils, including plant-made pharmaceuticals.
 Examples are human pro-insulin that has been made in canola seed. A literature search was
conducted to examine the effects of canola oilseed consumption on coronary heart disease,
insulin sensitivity, and has influenced biological functions that affect various other biomarkers
of disease risk.
 Tobacco cells have also been used to produce vaccines. To date, a vaccine against Newcastle
virus disease in poultry produced by tobacco cell culture has been approved for commercial
application and has been a highly efficient producer of vaccines.
 Because of the expansion of biotechnology in plant science, there is an increasing amount and
purity of antigen in transgenic plants to stimulate adequate response to diseases.

31. THANK YOU
FOR
LISTENING!!

32. BIOTECHNOLOGY IN PLANT SCIENCE
GROUP 1
1. Sotelo, Kyrie Ellieson L.
2. Toledo, Andrea Maureen L.
3. Velasco, Electa Kyria A.
4. Mina, Renzhea Therese S.
5. Solivio, Jarenne Eclaire D.
6. Belonio, Gabrielle D.
7. Billones, Ramfel John C.