Question

Explain how inserting a transgene into the chloroplast genome can pose less environmental risk than inserting it into the nuclear genome?

(Please don't answer in cursive writing )

Answer 1

Inserting a transgene in a chloroplast is more beneficial than inserting a transgene in a nucear genome. When a transgene is inserted in a chloroplast genome, it is integrated via homologous recombination that prevents the gene silencing, which is a common possibility in a nuclear genome. The higher level of expression of the transgene in the chloroplast than in the nuclear genome results in the accumulation of higher number of the foreign proteins. Moreover, the insertion of transgene in chloroplast reduces the chances of the environmental dispersal of the transgene because of the maternal inheritence. However, a nuclear genome will disperse this transgene rapidly, which might result in a noticable change in the plant species.