THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA
SCHOOL OF NATURAL SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
STUDENT’S NAME & COMPUTER NUMBER:
Banda Charles-2019050030
Beenzu Emmanuel-2019003007
Chattah K. Claudia-2019087057
Musonko Benson-2019031124
Patel J.H. Hassan- 2019032953
GROUP NUMBER: five
TASK: Bt corn GMO lab
COURSE CODE AND TITLE: BIO 4452 -Techniques in Recombinant DNA Technology
ATTENTION: Ms M. Kapaale
Title: BT CORN GMO LAB
Objectives:
1. To determine whether the corn samples contains any genetically engineered corn
Procedure:
1. Load the DNA samples
2. Load the primers
3. Highlight all the DNA samples and the primers
4. Run PCR
5. Load the samples in the gel
6. Run samples in the gel electrophoresis
7. Run DNA or protein cell
8. Add dye: ethidium bromide
9. Use the black background
10. Click on lab bench
11. Run gel
12. Click on data screen
13. Click on loaded
14. Click on the band to show the migration distance
15. Then highlight the sequence
16. Copy to clipboard then blast to NCBI
17. File name: run DNA
18. THEN CLICK ON BLAST
Results
Batch 1 results
Batch 2 results
Batch 3 results
Answers to the questions
1. Yes, three of the samples contained the Bt gene from two different batches, sample 5
from batch 2 and samples 7 and 14 from batch 3.
2.
3. There are several ways in which Mr. Kellers non Bt-corn could be contaminated ranging
from:
a. Cross contamination: in which pollen from other nearby Bt planted corn could have
been transferred by wind into Mr Kellers farm non Bt corn which could have led to
the contamination.
b. By the use of contaminated equipment: during planting or harvesting periods, tools
which were used in the plantation on Bt corn in other farms could have been used on
Mr Kellers farm and led to the contamination of his non Bt corn.
c. If the previous plants on the same farm had the Bt gene, then there can be passed
contamination on the new non Bt corn.
d. The supplier of Mr Kellers corn might have mixed Bt corn with the non Bt corn by
mistake during planting leading to contamination of the non Bt corn plant in the field.
4. Yes, it is, because the Bt corn that has been approved for consumption is considered safe
to eat by regulatory authorities such as FDA and CDC. Bt corn is genetically modified to
produce a protein from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which helps protect the
crop from certain pests. This makes it pest resistant. However, it's essential to follow any
guidelines or regulations set by local food safety authorities when consuming Bt corn
products. It could also be noted that from the two batches whose samples tested positive
for the Bt gene although approved for consumption, the corn in sample 14 from batch 3
may need to undergo further tests and analysis and undergo rigorous tests because it
contained the Cry9C gene that showed allergen potential in preliminary tests so it would
be advised to get further guidance from the regulatory authorities.