DNA Plant Technology
Encyclopedia
DNA Plant Technology was an early pioneer in applying transgenic biotechnology
to problems in agriculture
. The company was founded in Cinnamonson, New Jersey
. In 1994, their headquarters moved to Oakland, California
. Some of the plants and products they developed included Vine sweet mini peppers
, the Fish tomato
and Y1 Tobacco
.
In the mid 1980s, DNAP attempted to use somaclonal variation
with corn
to produce buttery-tasting popcorn
without the need to add butter
. In 1993, DNAP purchased the Freshworld premium fruit and vegetable brand from Du Pont for a mixture of shares, cash and intellectual rights valued at over $30 million.
In 2002, Bionova shut down DNA Plant Technology.
product (tomato; antifreeze gene; staphylococcal Protein A) from the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
. This product remains controversial in the history of biotechnology, because an antifreeze gene isolated from an arctic flounder
was transgenically inserted into a tomato in an attempt to create a frost-tolerant tomato. Although this product was tested in a greenhouse
, and may have been tested in the field, it was never commercialized.
In 1995, DNA Plant Technology unveiled a second generation of a different transgenic tomato and served it at a meeting of its shareholders. That same year, DNA Plant Technology sold its wholly owned subsidiary called to Frost Technology Corporation to Simplot
.
and Carolyn Napoli made discoveries about post transcriptional gene silencing that went on to form the basis of a number of U.S. patents on gene regulation and crop manipulation. Key experiments in the control of plant transgene expression were performed by Jorgensen after he joined DNA Plant Technology corporation / Advanced Genetic Sciences, Inc., including the modification of flower color in ornamental plants. This research led to the discovery of gene silencing
when an extra copy of a key gene yielded white rather than blue flowers.
targeted DNA Plant Technology, charging that it had illegally smuggled Y1
Tobacco seeds out of the United States. The U.S. Justice Department charged DNA Plant Technology with one misdemeanor
count of conspiracy
to violate the Tobacco Seed Export law, prohibiting the export of tobacco seeds without a permit (a law which was repealed in 1991).
DNA Plant Technology pled guilty in 1998 and agreed to cooperate with further investigations of Brown & Williamson. However, the U.S. Supreme Court eventually ruled in March 2000 that the FDA did not have the authority to regulate tobacco as a drug.
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
to problems in agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. The company was founded in Cinnamonson, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. In 1994, their headquarters moved to Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
. Some of the plants and products they developed included Vine sweet mini peppers
Vine sweet mini peppers
Vine sweet mini peppers are a hybrid sweet pepper, small in size sold in an assorted tri-color pack under the Master's Touch Label. It was originally developed in the late 1990s by Bionova Produce Inc. formerly R.B. Packing Inc. following the trend to go "mini" that continues to grab attention in...
, the Fish tomato
Fish tomato
Informally referred to as the "fish tomato", DNA Plant Technology's transgenic tomato is genetically engineered with a gene from the winter flounder....
and Y1 Tobacco
Y1 (tobacco)
Y1 is a strain of tobacco that was cross-bred by Brown & Williamson to obtain an unusually high nicotine content. It became controversial in the 1990s when the United States Food and Drug Administration used it as evidence that tobacco companies were intentionally manipulating the nicotine content...
.
In the mid 1980s, DNAP attempted to use somaclonal variation
Somaclonal variation
Somaclonal variation It is the term used to describe the variation seen in plants that have been produced by plant tissue culture. Chromosomal rearrangements are an important source of this variation....
with corn
Corn
Corn is the name used in the United States, Canada, and Australia for the grain maize.In much of the English-speaking world, the term "corn" is a generic term for cereal crops, such as* Barley* Oats* Wheat* Rye- Places :...
to produce buttery-tasting popcorn
Popcorn
Popcorn, or popping corn, is corn which expands from the kernel and puffs up when heated. Corn is able to pop because, like sorghum, quinoa and millet, its kernels have a hard moisture-sealed hull and a dense starchy interior. This allows pressure to build inside the kernel until an explosive...
without the need to add butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
. In 1993, DNAP purchased the Freshworld premium fruit and vegetable brand from Du Pont for a mixture of shares, cash and intellectual rights valued at over $30 million.
In 2002, Bionova shut down DNA Plant Technology.
Fish tomato
In 1991, DNA Plant Technology applied for and were granted permission to conduct a field test permit for their transgenic fish tomatoFish tomato
Informally referred to as the "fish tomato", DNA Plant Technology's transgenic tomato is genetically engineered with a gene from the winter flounder....
product (tomato; antifreeze gene; staphylococcal Protein A) from the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture responsible for protecting animal health, animal welfare, and plant health. APHIS is the lead agency for collaboration with other agencies to protect U.S. agriculture from invasive pests and...
. This product remains controversial in the history of biotechnology, because an antifreeze gene isolated from an arctic flounder
Arctic flounder
The Arctic flounder, Liopsetta glacialis, is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. It is a demersal fish that lives on coastal mud bottoms in salt, brackish and fresh waters at depths of up to...
was transgenically inserted into a tomato in an attempt to create a frost-tolerant tomato. Although this product was tested in a greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
, and may have been tested in the field, it was never commercialized.
In 1995, DNA Plant Technology unveiled a second generation of a different transgenic tomato and served it at a meeting of its shareholders. That same year, DNA Plant Technology sold its wholly owned subsidiary called to Frost Technology Corporation to Simplot
Simplot
The J. R. Simplot Company, commonly referred to as Simplot, was founded in 1923 by 14-year-old J. R. Simplot near the small agricultural community of Declo in south central Idaho. J. R. Simplot led his company to tremendous growth in the period between its founding and World War II...
.
Discovery of gene silencing
While working for DNA Plant Technology, the scientists Richard A. JorgensenRichard A. Jorgensen
Richard A. Jorgensen is an American molecular geneticist and an early pioneer in the study of post transcriptional gene silencing.-Biography:...
and Carolyn Napoli made discoveries about post transcriptional gene silencing that went on to form the basis of a number of U.S. patents on gene regulation and crop manipulation. Key experiments in the control of plant transgene expression were performed by Jorgensen after he joined DNA Plant Technology corporation / Advanced Genetic Sciences, Inc., including the modification of flower color in ornamental plants. This research led to the discovery of gene silencing
Gene silencing
Gene silencing is a general term describing epigenetic processes of gene regulation. The term gene silencing is generally used to describe the "switching off" of a gene by a mechanism other than genetic modification...
when an extra copy of a key gene yielded white rather than blue flowers.
Legal controversy
In the 1990s, the FDAFood and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
targeted DNA Plant Technology, charging that it had illegally smuggled Y1
Y1 (tobacco)
Y1 is a strain of tobacco that was cross-bred by Brown & Williamson to obtain an unusually high nicotine content. It became controversial in the 1990s when the United States Food and Drug Administration used it as evidence that tobacco companies were intentionally manipulating the nicotine content...
Tobacco seeds out of the United States. The U.S. Justice Department charged DNA Plant Technology with one misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
count of conspiracy
Conspiracy (crime)
In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
to violate the Tobacco Seed Export law, prohibiting the export of tobacco seeds without a permit (a law which was repealed in 1991).
DNA Plant Technology pled guilty in 1998 and agreed to cooperate with further investigations of Brown & Williamson. However, the U.S. Supreme Court eventually ruled in March 2000 that the FDA did not have the authority to regulate tobacco as a drug.