theonlyandre":3booz7nd said:
Hi, my name is Andreas Christodoulou, and I am a high school student doing a biology project on genetic engineering with milk and livestock and I was wondering if I could get an interview. Thanks a lot. Please add any sort of job titles or degrees if you can because that it required. Thanks
Questions:
1.What kind of enzymes are used in the cattle to produce better quality milk?
2. What is the benefit of using omega-3 fatty acids in milk cows?
3. What is pasteurization and irradiation and is it used in your product?
4.Should one use pesticides and herbicides and how is this factored in to the health of the cows?
5. Are methods for treating the genetic disease Mad Cow desease tended to and how is it found early.
I'll take a quick shot at addressing your questions although none of them are directly related to genetic engineering.
1. Exogenous enzymes are not routinely used on the animal side of milk production. Enzymes are protiens that, if ingested, will be broken down into amino acids and will not maintain any enzymatic activity. Obviously enzymes are invol
2. There is no real benefit to using omega-3s in milk cows. The topic of omega-3s and milk is in producing milk that has a higher amout of omega-3 fat. Studies show that higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids (as in fish) are heart healthy. There is a line of genetically engineered pigs that have higher levels of omega-3s, hence healthy bacon. That sparked discussion about producing genetically engineered cows that produce higher levels of omega-3s in their milk and meat. But it has not been done yet.
3. Pastuerization and irradiation are methods of sterilizing milk....pastuerization by heat and irradiation by UV light. The standard milk that you buy in the store is pastuerized. Much of the "organic" milk in the store is irradiated. Both methods provide milk that is free of bacteria and safe for human consumption.
4. The use of pesticides/herbicides is an individual rancher/farmer's choice. If use regulations are followed, it should not be harmful to people consuming meat/milk that have been subjected directly or indirectly to their use.
5. Mad Cow is not a genetic disease. It is an environmental disease. There is no treatment for an animal that has the disease. The USDA has instituted many regulations to prevent animals from contracting the disease. As for genetic engineering, there are research groups attempting to produce animals that cannot contract the disease. For instance, animals could be genetically modified to be missing an enzyme that is necessary for the disease to infect those animals.
B.S. - Biochemistry
M.S. - Molecular Endocrinology
M.B.A.
