4 ms·

Not to sound condescending but I think we have yet to observe radiation leading to useful mutation. Radiation does not lead to 'mutation' in the sense of what y

by Knufen 6y ago

Not to sound condescending but I think we have yet to observe radiation leading to useful mutation. Radiation does not lead to 'mutation' in the sense of what you are implying. Rather it leads to DNA damages (breakage of chemical bonds) which usually leads to cancer.

zaarn 6y ago
Radiation increases mutation rates. Natural mutations occur through not vastly different mechanisms either. In case you think no positive mutations come out of it; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding We literally blasted plants with radiation and then bred the ones that looked like they had some positive mutations. Especially the list of notable results is interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding#Notable_mutagen_varieties https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding#Notable_muta...
- Knufen 6y ago
  You are definitely right, but I probably should have specified. Irradiating seeds is vastly different than irradiating already living specimen, and hardly transferable to insects I believe.
  - zaarn 6y ago
    Irradiating the entire specimen is not so different if you also irradiate the part of them that produces the seed. You're just irradiating an earlier stage of reproduction, the result is unlikely to be different. Seeds have the advantage that they do not move and contain little water that could interfere with the radiation. The insect will produce it's own seed once irradiated, infertile or not.
NickNameNick 6y ago
It's been tried. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_gardening https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_gardening "The practice of plant irradiation has resulted in the development of over 2000 new varieties of plants, most of which are now used in agricultural production" See also: https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/atom-garden-eden/ https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/atom-garden-eden/

by Knufen 6y ago

zaarn 6y ago

Radiation increases mutation rates. Natural mutations occur through not vastly different mechanisms either. In case you think no positive mutations come out of it; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding We literally blasted plants with radiation and then bred the ones that looked like they had some positive mutations. Especially the list of notable results is interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding#Notable_mutagen_varieties https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutation_breeding#Notable_muta...

Knufen 6y ago
You are definitely right, but I probably should have specified. Irradiating seeds is vastly different than irradiating already living specimen, and hardly transferable to insects I believe.
- zaarn 6y ago
  Irradiating the entire specimen is not so different if you also irradiate the part of them that produces the seed. You're just irradiating an earlier stage of reproduction, the result is unlikely to be different. Seeds have the advantage that they do not move and contain little water that could interfere with the radiation. The insect will produce it's own seed once irradiated, infertile or not.

NickNameNick 6y ago

It's been tried. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_gardening https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_gardening "The practice of plant irradiation has resulted in the development of over 2000 new varieties of plants, most of which are now used in agricultural production" See also: https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/atom-garden-eden/ https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/atom-garden-eden/