Question

Golden rice is a transgenic crop of the future with the following improved trait?

• A.
  High protein content
• B. High vitamin A content
• C. Insect resistance
• D. High lysine (essential amino acid) content

Answer 1

The correct option is B High vitamin A content

Blindness is caused by the deficiency of vitamin A. Genetically modified crops having high content of vitamin A can be used to overcome the problem of blindness.

Golden rice is genetically modified rice that is modified to have nutritional value of vitamin A as beta-carotene is a precursor to vitamin A.

It was developed by transferring two beta-carotene biosynthesis genes into the rice genome:-

• $psy$ (phytoene synthase) from a plant, Narcissus pseudonarcissus (daffodil).
• $crtI$ (phytoene desaturase) from the soil bacterium, Erwinia uredovora

Hybrid maize crops have been developed to have high lysine content. Golden rice has not been modified to have high lysine content.

Cotton, corn and brinjal crops are modified by introducing the $cry$ gene from $Bacillusthuringiensis$ to encode Bt toxin protein. Bt toxin provides resistance to these crops from insects and pests.

Potatoes have been genetically modified to have high protein content.

Hence the correct option is
d. High vitamin A content