This book includes 6 chapters examining the relevance of transgenic crops in food production, prices and the environment. It initially describes the historical evolution of biotechnology and defines key terms, before moving on to explore transgenic technology and food regime concepts. It analyses genetically modified organism (GMO) policy as part of overall agrarian policy, considering neoregulation in the USA, the EU, Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa and Serbia, as well as discussing agricultural performance, support and trade relations. The effect of transgenic food production on world food prices is also examined, along with food security at global and regional levels, and the links between GMOs and world hunger. The environmental implications of transgenic technology are considered through analysis of pesticide and fertilizer usage and efficiency, and pesticide consumption in GMO and non-GMO producing countries. Finally, the book considers the entry of transgenic ingredients into the food chain and lists GMOs approved for use in foods and products contaminated with unapproved GMOs. The key features of this book include: a detailed analysis of economic data; a comparison of international trends, including BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and Serbia; evaluation of environmental and food security implications; and glossary of important terms. This book is intended for a wide range of professionals and researchers whose interests relate to all aspects of the global food system, including policy makers, policy advisers and analysts, NGOs, students and other interest groups.

GMO Food: A Reference Handbook offers an in-depth discussion of genetically modified food. It covers the history of, opposition to, regulation of, and labeling of genetic modifications, along with the potential benefits and harm involved. GMO Food: A Reference Handbook is intended to serve as a research guide for young adults in high school and beyond. Students at all grade levels should be able to use the book as an introduction to the history of genetic engineering of organisms and the use of this technology for the development of new forms of crops and foods. They will learn briefly about historic methods of plant and animal modification (such as cross-breeding) and, in more detail, how discoveries since the late nineteenth century have greatly changed the process of plant and animal modification. These discoveries include important steps forward in genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetic engineering, and related fields. They will also learn about the variety of social, political, philosophical, economic, and other issues that have arisen alongside these scientific advances, as well as about some of the laws, regulations, and other solutions that have been developed for dealing with the range of attitudes about genetically modified foods. The second edition covers developments since 2014.

Delegates to the 3rd International Conference on Environmental and Economic Impact on Sustainable Development contributed the peer-reviewed papers contained in this book. The papers discuss the most serious problems affecting sustainable development. They consider the impact of economic constraints on the environment, taking into account the social aspects as well as the over-use of natural resources. Uncontrolled development can also result in damage to the environment in terms of the release of toxic substances and hazardous waste. Thus, attention is paid to issues related to whether some forms of development are compatible with environmental protection, particularly in cases of possible serious contamination and toxicity. The focus in the book is on more constructive and progressive approaches to the problems discussed, to ensure sustainability. The hope is that through the shared experiences of experts, we can learn from past failure, to avoid repeating similar mistakes, while attempting to prevent emerging threats to the environmental and ecological systems. Fundamental to these concepts are an analysis of the inherent risks and the development of appropriate strategies. The papers in this book cover such topics as: Environmental assessments; Environmental policies and planning; Water resources management; Natural resources management; Legislation and regulations; Development issues; Economic impact.

Technology for modifying the genotypes and phenotypes of insects and other arthropods has steadily progressed with the development of more precise and powerful methods, most prominently transgenic modification. For many insect pests, there is now almost unlimited ability to modify phenotypes to benefit human health and agriculture. Precise DNA modifications and gene drive have the power to make wild-type populations less harmful in ways that could never have been performed with previous transgenic approaches. This transition from primarily laboratory science to greater application for field use has also necessitated greater development of modeling, ethical considerations and regulatory oversight. The 2nd Edition of Transgenic Insects contains chapters contributed by experts in the field that cover technologies and applications that are now possible. This edition includes increased attention to associated challenges of risk assessment, regulation, and public engagement. This book will be very valuable to students and researchers in entomology, molecular biology, genetics, public health and agriculture, and will also appeal to practitioners who are implementing the technology, and to regulators, stakeholders and ethicists.

Algae are sunlight-driven cell factories, and can efficiently absorb CO2 and convert light energy to chemical energy such as lipid, starch and other carbohydrates and release O2. Algal feedstock is a promising resource for bioproduct production, given its high photosynthetic efficiency for producing biomass compared to conventional crops. Microalgae can be used for flue-gas and wastewater bioremediation. This book highlights recent breakthroughs in the multidisciplinary areas of algal biotechnology and the chapters feature recent developments from cyanobacteria to eukaryotic algae, from theoretical biology to applied biology. It also includes the latest advancements in algal-based synthetic biology, including metabolic engineering, artificial biological system construction and green chemicals production. With contributions by leading authorities in algal biotechnology research, it is a valuable resource for graduate students and researchers in the field, and those involved in the study of photosynthesis and green-cell factories.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of plant omics and big data in the fields of plant and crop biology. It discusses each omics layer individually, including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and covers model and non-model species. In a section on advanced topics, it considers developments in each specialized domain, including genome editing and enhanced breeding strategies (such as genomic selection and high-throughput phenotyping), with the aim of providing tools to help tackle global food security issues. The importance of online resources in big data biology are highlighted in a section summarizing both wet- and dry-biological portals. This section introduces biological resources, datasets, online bioinformatics tools and approaches that are in the public domain. This book is for students, engineers, researchers and academics in plant biology, genetics, biotechnology and bioinformatics.

Developments in genomics and biotechnology are opening up new avenues for accelerating the domestication of forest trees in a climate change-driven world. This book presents an authoritative update of forest tree biotechnology and genomics methodologies, procedures and accomplishments, from basic biological science to applications in forestry and related sciences. It gives expert evaluation of achievements and discussion about the impact that novel forest biotechnological and genomics approaches are having on traditional breeding for improvement of forest tree species and production of forest-based products. It also describes the legal and regulatory aspects of forest biotechnology, with an emphasis on biosafety. It is a reference for forest biologists, including basic and applied scientists involved in forest tree breeding and biotechnology, bioenergy research, biomaterial product development. It is a comprehensive text for graduate-level students in the areas of Plant Biology and Forest Genetics, Silviculture and Agroforestry, and Bioenergy Science and Technology.

Most plants are colonized by endophytes: bacterial and fungal microorganisms, without visible disease symptoms. With state-of-the-art knowledge on their discovery, qualities and roles, this book describes endophyte diversity, their value, exploitation and future challenges. It explains how beneficial endophytes colonize plants, and how they might help mitigate climate change effects, assist pest control and interact with mycorrhizal fungi to boost yield. Endophytes can facilitate the access to nutrients, produce particular metabolites, and change the plant's chemistry, physiology and (defense) responses. Endophyte biosynthetic pathways can, alone or in combination with the plant's, yield novel chemicals, with yet-to-be-discovered pharmacological characteristics as well. The book describes how functional metagenomics can explore and boost yields of useful endophyte products.

Genome sequencing has become a basic tool of plant and animal breeding. Reduced costs have allowed the sequencing of thousands of plant lines or cultivars, leading to previously unobtainable insights into genetic impacts during breeding and generating large numbers of novel candidate breeding genes. This book summarizes the impacts that the genome sequencing revolution has had on agriculture with reference to applications across species and locations. It explains new techniques and their use in understanding epigenetics, breeding and conservation. It is a useful resource for scientists wanting to learn how different fields of agriculture have adapted novel genome sequencing technologies to their requirements, and for those wanting to transfer technologies and lessons learned from one field of agriculture to another. This book is a useful resource for students and researchers in biotechnology, genetics, genomics and breeding.

The genetic improvement of fish for aquaculture and related fisheries has seen huge advances over recent years. Building upon the previous two editions of Aquaculture and Fisheries Biotechnology: Genetic Approaches, this 3rd edition offers a presentation of traditional selective breeding, modern genetic biotechnology, genomics, gene transfer and gene editing, and the latest developments in genetic biotechnology such as epigenetics, xenogenesis and genome-wide association study coupled with commercial application, the impact of government regulation and expectations for the future. It provides a firm grounding in relevant aspects of classical genetics, before focusing on particular aspects such as sex reversal and breeding as applied in aquaculture and fisheries. It also explores how more recent molecular genetics, genomics and biotechnology techniques can be used and combined in improvement programmes for fish and aquaculture species. A glossary explains the latest terminology used in biotechnology and genetics. This book will be useful for research scientists and students in marine biotechnology, aquaculture biotechnology, and fish genetics and breeding.