About 18 months ago the UK Government legalised the planting of gene edited crops outside the laboratory
environment. Gene modification (GMO) is still illegal in the UK and EU for most plants and animals and
definitely for human embryos. In the US there is extensive use of GMO in the food chain – hence a block to
trade deals with EU and UK.

So what’s the difference?

Both are genetic engineering techniques that modify the DNA of a living organism by removing, modifying or
adding specific parts of its genome. (Genome is the complete set of DNA, or genetic material, in an organism.).
GMO does this by adding complete genome sequences from other organisms or plants.

Gene editing snips the existing DNA at specific points and inserts a small sequence of different amino acids to
introduce improvement be they in terms of crop resistance or new medical treatments.

At the leading edge of the latter is CAR-T therapy where a patient’s T cells are harvested, gene modified and
reinfused to combat specific cancers.

The focus of the day is on the prospects of gene editing for crop production, protection and resistance to disease
and blight. In addition to setting out the basic chemistry of gene editing along with its use and applications to
plants, the ethics of gene editing of crops will be explored. The New Genetic Technologies (Precision Breeding)
Act. is expected to reach the secondary legislation stage in Parliament in the early new year, making this Special
Interest Day very timely. (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/6/pdfs/ukpga_20230006_en.pdf )

Contributors:
Dr Ben Miller, University of East Anglia
Dr Penny Hundleby, John Innes Centre Norwich
Dr Johnathan Napier, Rothampstead Research Station
Ralph Early, Food Ethics Council
To register initial interest email the contact above.