Aside from new varieties that have lower water requirements, pest- and disease-resistant gene-spliced crop varieties also make water use more efficient indirectly.

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This suggests that those people with an aberrant form of the protein (the result of the defective gene) might be more resistant to herpes infection than their fellows.

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Deleting this gene from mice makes the animals almost totally resistant to artery gunk.

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Yet, as the National Academy of Sciences has noted, this method is far more unpredictable than inserting a single gene from another species, as was done to produce insect-resistant corn, soybeans and cotton.

FORBES: Green Genes

Most of them have had but a single gene tweaked, either to make them poisonous to pestilential insects or resistant to a particular herbicide so that it can be used freely.

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The team, based at the University's School of Medicine, found the gene called FGF1 was found at higher levels in cancer cells that are resistant to platinum chemotherapy treatments, such as carboplatin and cisplatin.

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For example, widespread failure in our handful of remaining major crops and animal breeds due to disease or pest outbreaks is a very real possibility: given that pest and pathogens are constantly evolving, a diverse gene pool is essential if we are to develop insect- and disease-resistant strains in the future.

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