RE: [gardeners] "Terminator" gene
Liz Albrook (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Tue, 17 Nov 1998 09:36:54 +0000
On 17 Nov 98 at 10:42, cvinson@mindspring.com wrote:
> I agree with Lucinda's call for a chemist who can help sort this
> out. I am ignorant.
You mean you want a bacteriologist to comment -- they actually know
something on the topic. My understanding of immunity and the
exchange of immunities among bacteria is a bit better than
average but still very crude. I know enough to take a full course of
antibiotics when prescribed so as to not help create superbacteria,
to not ask for or take antibiotics for viral infections for the same
reason and to avoid people who take daily doses of antibiotics
because they are apt to harbor superbacteria that are harmless to
them and deadly to others.
I worked for several years with a person who fell into the last
category. In 1988 or so, when discoveries concerning the exchange
of immunities between unrelated bacteria were made, he and thousands
of other people were taken off of those daily doses of antibiotics
because of the extreme threat they posed to other people.
I am uncertain as to the levels of active antibiotics found in meats.
Just because a steer was dosed with high levels of a given antibiotic
does not to me indicate that the flesh of that animal, killed 24
hours or more after innoculation, contains enough antibiotic to
warrant concern. This is an area in which I have found there to
be quite a bit of over-the-counter scare-tactics type of information
without having seen much mainstream science. Though ignorant, I am
somewhat bouyed by the fact that I don't know many bacteriologists
that are vegetarians.
I also can say that I know just enough about genetic exchanges
between plants to be very uncomfortable with the idea of "terminator
technology". There may be nothing at all wrong with it but my
limited understanding of the whole process tells me this is a genie
that shouldn't be released from the bottle.
Perhaps there's a roving botanist who could comment on the likelihood
of introduction of genetically-based sterility into the environment
if "TT" seeds are planted.
Liz
who's back with a reasonably healthy computer