"Identification of GMO foods using PCR"

"Identification of GMO foods using PCR"

Running head: GMOs Identification of GMOs using PCR College: In the laboratory, we performed DNA isolation on food products (soy beans) and amplification of the DNA was done by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) on soy beans food DNA in order to detect the presence of genetic modification. The genetically modified reference standards were used as controls and the samples were analyzed using agarose gel electrophoresis. GMOs was not identified in all of our soy beans samples with PCR method, we rejected our null hypothesis that stated GMOs was present in our soy beans samples.

Introduction Genetically modified foods are ever appearing in the news. While on the other hand, genetic modifications have improved several crops that include increasing the yields. There are many groups of people who have raised protest against “tinkering” with crop plants (FDA. 2000). However, In the U.S.A., The introduction of these genetically modified foods to the market has been with little fanfare. Most parts of the world have been experiencing increasing and strong resistance to any genetically modified foods introduction to the market place.

The European Union together with other countries usually need certification on foods entering their countries and this should be Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) free ( DG JRC,1998). Testing of the food products is done to confirm the presence of GMOs. Occasionally, food contamination occurs or food testing is inaccurate and this results to the presence of GMOs in foods. PCR is one the methods used to test for GMOs in food products, whereby the band presence shows that there are GMOs. The PCR principle is to multiply specific DNA sequences, so that they can be detected.

This method that is highly sensitive offers the advantage to detect the molecules of DNA that are more thermo stable than proteins (Arakawa et al, 1998). The efficiency of confirmation, identification and screening strategies is supposed to be examined with respect to false-positive rates, increased use of specific regulator sequences, marker genes disappearance and the increasing GM foods in number (Clark et al, 2002). In the lab, the GMOs presence in conventional soy beans samples was tested by PCR.

The null hypothesis was; there is GMOs in the soy beans. Methods The experiment objective as indicated earlier was to use the PCR method to identify genetically modified foods in the soy beans. Firstly, the DNA was isolated from the soy beans samples. This was done by weighing about 50-100 mg of the sample and later it was transferred to a test tube. 400 ?l of extraction buffer was added to the tube then the tube contents were mashed with a micro-pestle. The test tubes were later incubated at 56°C for about an hour.