GCSE Biology · Edexcel 1BI0 · Topic 4E
Tissue culture and biological control
Key points
- Tissue culture grows new plants from small pieces of tissue on a sterile nutrient medium. The new plants are clones, so rare or valuable plants can be produced quickly.
- Biological control uses a living organism, such as a predator or parasite, to reduce a pest population instead of chemical pesticides.
- Advantages of biological control: no chemical residue, targeted at the pest. Risks: the control organism may become a pest itself or affect other species.
- Fertilisers add mineral ions, e.g. nitrates, to soil to increase crop yield.
- GM crops (e.g. pest-resistant or drought-tolerant) can increase yields to help feed a growing population.
- Evaluate solutions to the food supply problem by weighing benefits against environmental, economic and ethical costs.
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Feeding a growing world population means producing more food without wrecking the environment. This sub-topic covers plant tissue culture and biological control, and how they compare with fertilisers and GM crops as ways of increasing food…
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