Arabidopsis Modified to Express Drosophila Melanogaster Gene

Over the years the use of TNT has left the soil of lands contaminated. TNT is used for many things, but one of the things that uses it the must is war.  There are still stretches of land contaminated from World War II. Scientist has found a way to modify Arabidopsis, which is a plant in the same family as the cabbage, to remove the TNT from the soil. Scientist modified Arabidopsis to express glutathione transferase (DmGSTE6) which is a gene found in Drosophila melanogaster, also known as the fruit fly. When the gene was inserted into the plant scientist noticed that the glutathione gene plant compared to that of a wild-type plant had two major differences. The first thing that was different was that the modified plant was more resistant to TNT and second, it was able to remove the TNT from the soil compared to the natural wild type plant which was not able to.

This is just the begin of the project, the scientist hope to be able to insert this gene into other plants or grasses that are more able to grow in more harsh environments. This to me is quite amazing. These same scientist as part of the team that recently discovered away to remove RDX from soil by modifying a grass species to absorb it. If they are able to combine the RDX removal factor and TNT removal factor, all in one plant, that would be a break through.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/12/161207091315.htm

Fruit Fly Gene Used to Detoxify Land

Recently, scientists at the University of York have discovered another use of a gene found in common fruit flies. This gene, found in the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, can be successfully expressed in a plant, and thus used to detoxify land contaminated with TNT. The plant specifically that this gene was tested on was Arabidopsis, a member of the cabbage family. Plants given the ability to express this gene were found to be more resistant to TNT and were better able to remove it from contaminated soil than wild-type plants without the gene.

The gene found in fruit flies, glutathione transferase, DmGSTE6, contains an enzyme that attaches to the TNT molecule itself and has the ability to make it less toxic through modification; making it less toxic to the environment in general, not just the plant. Trinitrotoluene, more commonly referred to as TNT, is an explosive that has been manufactured and used in waste sites, mines and war zones. Any remnant of TNT resists being broken down by microbes and remains in the soil for decades. It then lingers in the roots of plants, and inhibits its growth, as well as its development.

Given the inability of TNT to breakdown, the most important factor of this gene could be that the transformation through the expression in Arabidopsis assists TNT into converting into a product that may be more easily broken down in the environment. There are sites dating back as far as World War II that are still affected by TNT in the area, indicating that something needs to be done and needs to be done quickly. Explosive remnants in the environment are not only a danger to plant and animal life, but a threat to human health as well.

I found this article to be extremely interesting for a multitude of reasons. I always think it is fascinating to see the scientific chain reaction of something that happened so many years ago. I also am curious to see the future of genetic engineering and just how far we will be able to use these techniques. With how far we've already come, I have no doubt that we will be able to improve and modify many problems in the environment.