5)+Use+of+Biological+resources

a) Food production b) Selective breeding c) Genetic modification d) Cloning
 * Section 5: Use of biological resources**

a) Food production

//Students will be assessed on their ability to:// __**Crop plant**__s 5.1 describe how glasshouses and polythene tunnels can be used to increase the yield of certain crops 5.2 understand the effects on crop yield of increased carbon dioxide and increased temperature in glasshouses 5.3 understand the use of fertiliser to increase crop yield 5.4 understand the reasons for pest control and the advantages and disadvantages of using pesticides and biological control with crop plants

N.B refer to the content of all the objectives above in your essay and use research to expand on them. Essay could be __**600 words**__ and include a bibliography with at least three sources of information (not including wikipedia).
 * __Possible__** Essay "**How can the yield of crop plants be responsibly increase**d"

__**Microorganism**__s (P152-156) 5.5 understand the role of yeast in the production of beer 5.6 describe a simple experiment to investigate carbon dioxide production by yeast, in different conditions **5.7 understand the role of bacteria (//Lactobacillus//) in the production of yoghurt** 5.8 interpret and label a diagram of an industrial fermenter and explain the need to provide suitable conditions in the fermenter, including aseptic precautions, nutrients, optimum temperature and pH, oxygenation and agitation, for the growth of microorganisms

Have a go at the following questions as revision before the end of unit test!



__** Fish farming **__ 5.9 explain the methods which are used to farm large numbers of fish to provide a source of protein, including maintenance of water quality, control of intraspecific and interspecific predation, control of disease, removal of waste products, quality and frequency of feeding and the use of selective breeding



b) Selective breeding

//Students will be assessed on their ability to:// 5.10 understand that plants with desired characteristics can be developed by selective breeding

** Selective breeding is used extensively to produce new plant varieties that: **
 * grow faster
 * are better adapted to the climate in which they live
 * have a better taste
 * are disease resistant
 * are bigger and stronger
 * yield a higher-quality, eg containing natural fibre
 * are frost resistant, so they can be planted earlier
 * are sweeter, have a better colour and/or texture, eg fruits
 * have a long shelf life for supermarkets and overseas shipping.

5.11 understand that animals with desired characteristics can be developed by selective breeding Farmer Brown is a dairy farmer and is known for his very creamy milk. The milk produced by his cows has become so popular that he is not able to fill his orders anymore. This is because his cows don't produce enough milk each day to meet the demand. He asked his veterinarian to give him some advice on how to solve this problem. He was looking for a cow that produced large amounts of creamy milk. The veterinarian suggested that he could solve his problem by selective breeding. He needed to identify the Friesian cows that produce the most milk and those Jersey cows that produce the creamiest milk and breed only with them. By mating these selected few, Farmer Brown was a ble to produce offspring which had an enhanced version of the characteristic. Over several years he followed this breeding program until he got the desired result, ie a cow that produced a **large amount** of **creamy milk**. ** Why is Selective Breeding important to farmers? **

Farmers of today look for a desired characteristic, ie creamier milk, tastier meat, disease resistant crops etc in their animals or plants, and use them to breed. They examine the natural of a specific plant or animal and select those individuals that have the desired characteristic. Those individuals are then bred in the hope that the offspring will show the desired characteristic. Farm animals that are bred in this way include dairy cattle, pigs, beef cattle, sheep and poultry. Farmers then use the offspring from these parents to breed again. In this way they are eventually able to breed a new variety of plant or animal with the best characteristics.



**c) Genetic modification (genetic engineering) **
Chapter 22 (P234) of the electronic Edexcel IGCSE book is very useful for this

//Students will be assessed on their ability to:// 5.12 describe the use of restriction enzymes to cut DNA at specific sites and ligase enzymes to join pieces of DNA together http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=swf::535::535::/sites/dl/free/0072437316/120078/bio37.swf::Restriction%20Endonucleases http://www.dnalc.org/resources/animations/restriction.html 5.13 describe how plasmids and viruses can act as vectors, which take up pieces of DNA, then insert this recombinant DNA into other cells http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/edexcel_pre_2011/genes/genesrev3.shtml 5.14 understand that large amounts of human insulin can be manufactured from genetically modified bacteria that are grown in a fermenter

5.15 evaluate the potential for using genetically modified plants to improve food production (illustrated by plants with improved resistance to pests) http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_gateway_pre_2011/living/genesrev3.shtml **5.16 recall that the term ‘transgenic’ means the transfer of genetic material from one species to a different species.**

Glow in the dark mice, really???? []

Now listen to this awesome tune: http://ib.bioninja.com.au/additional-resources/biology-songs/transgenic-rhapsody.html

__**d) Cloning **__




//Students will be assessed on their ability to:// 5.17 describe the process of micropropagation (tissue culture) in which small pieces of plants (explants) are grown //in vitro// using nutrient media

5.18 understand how micropropagation can be used to produce commercial quantities of identical plants (clones) with desirable characteristics

5.19 describe the stages in the production of cloned mammals involving the introduction of a diploid nucleus from a mature cell into an enucleated egg cell, illustrated by Dolly the sheep

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/cloning/whatiscloning/


 * 5.20 evaluate the potential for using cloned transgenic animals, for example to produce commercial quantities of human antibodies or organs for transplantation **

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/cloning/whyclone/ http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/cloning/clissues/