Word: amino
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...gets attention but trivializes the potential of a new tool for decreasing the environmental impact of agrochemicals and improving the nutritional value of food. Insect- and herbicide-resistant crops substantially decrease the amount of agrochemicals applied in the environment. Similarly, crops engineered with increased vitamin, iron and balanced amino-acid content can improve the health of millions of people. These are the goals of conscientious scientists who want to make positive contributions to the human condition. DANIEL BUSH, Plant Biologist Urbana...
...what happens when they don't work? Several years ago, a company developed a soybean with some genetic threads borrowed from the Brazil nut in an attempt to boost the bean's amino-acid content. The soy began acting like the nut--so much so that it churned out not just amino acids but also chemicals that can trigger allergies in nut-sensitive consumers. The company quickly scrapped the product. Last spring a study published by Cornell University showed that pollen from some strains of corn with built-in pesticides can kill the larva of the Monarch butterfly, a pest...
ARGININE This amino acid is gaining popularity as a nonprescription treatment for high cholesterol. Animal studies and preliminary studies in humans suggest that arginine may improve coronary blood flow and lower cholesterol levels by acting as an antioxidant and helping keep blood-vessel tissue elastic. Doctors have yet to show, however, that arginine can actually prevent heart disease...
Creatine, on the other hand, is not a steroid and more closely resembles a protein. Synthesized from amino acids, it functions as an energy reservoir for short, high-intensity workouts. You could boost your creatine levels by eating red meat and fish, but it would take an awful lot of steak and sushi...
...strong evidence, Snowdon cautions, it is still possible that folate does not play a direct role in the disease. The link could be coincidental. Or it could be that the same mechanism that triggers the disease also destroys the body's ability to retain folate. But folate and the amino acid it controls, homocysteine, have already been implicated in a broad range of diseases, as well as certain neurological birth defects...