Q. Cultivation of Bt cotton has been much in the news. The prefix Bt means
A) Barium-treated cotton seeds
B) Bigger thread variety of cotton with better tensile strength
C) Produced by biotechnology using restriction enzymes and ligases
D) Carrying an endotoxin gene from Bacillus thuringiensis
Explanation
Bt cotton, Bt tobacco, Bt tomato, etc are transgenic plants having Bt-2 gene encoding Bt toxin, (e.g., thurioside). Bt toxin gene has been isolated from a bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis therefore, called Bt (i.e., Bacillus thuringiensis). These plants are resistant for more than 140 species of insects including common cabbage worm, caterpillars, bag worms, canker worms, gypsy worm, etc.
Reviewed by Dr. Abubacker
Physics Educator & NEET/JEE Specialist
Ph.D. in Physics with 19+ years of teaching experience.