Transgenic Mice Training Video

These videos are kind of mind-blowing. Clear, informative, oddly twisted. Required viewing. All 5 parts.

Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Video: Orientation

IPNH Overview Video

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After visiting the AMNH…

The Transgenic American Chestnut Project

Last night I emailed two of the researchers involved in producing the first transgenic, blight resistant, American Chestnut Tree and we were on the phone the next day. Really interesting guys and a really interesting project. The genes they are using have all been chosen with public perception as a key design factor. For instance, forgoing more widely used frog anti-fungal toxin genes, in favor of a gene from wheat (a known food). They also use a herbicide resistant gene instead of an anti-biotic resistant gene for the selection process. It’s resistant to Gluphosinate Ammonium (sp?) which is marketed as Finale and Basta amongst other names. I’m not sure how unusual that is, but it’s the first time I’ve seen anyone using herbicide resistance for anything other than industrial farming. They also added GFP as a growth indicator, but suggest they might take it out over potential public anxieties… glowing trees and what not.

The really interesting thing about the project is that is it the first GMO I’ve looked at (other than those malarial resistant mosquitos at UCI) that is being designed with release into the wild as a primary objective. This is the main reason for the concern over public perception. They’ve already got a small cluster of sapplings in their 2nd or 3rd year. They’ve got the genes, but they haven’t been blight tested yet.

I’ll be going out on site to visit them in the second week of June.

http://www.esf.edu/chestnut/

http://chestnut.cas.psu.edu/PDFs/newsletters/theBur_15-special.pdf

http://www.amazon.com/American-Chestnut-Death-Rebirth-Perfect/dp/0520247302

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Hall of PostNatural Organisms

Welcome to the IPNH Development Blog

This is for all persons participating in the development of the Institute for PostNatural History to share what they are working on.