Genetically modified organism

The first genetically modified organism emerged from a Stanford laboratory in spring 1973, when Stanley Cohen and Herbert Boyer proved that genes could be transplanted between species. Their E. coli bacteria, carrying genes from an African clawed frog, became living proof that the code of life was editable—and that humanity could rewrite organisms at will.

The adjacent possible required three converging capabilities. Restriction enzymes could cut DNA at precise sequences. Plasmids—circular DNA molecules that bacteria exchange naturally—could serve as vectors to carry foreign genes. And DNA ligase could splice cut fragments together. Cohen at Stanford had expertise in plasmids; Boyer at UCSF had mastered restriction enzymes. After meeting at a conference in Hawaii in November 1972, they realized their skills were complementary.

The first successful experiment used genes from one bacterium inserted into another. Cohen's plasmid pSC101 was cut with the restriction enzyme EcoRI, which left "sticky ends"—single-stranded overhangs that could bond with matching sequences from any source. Foreign DNA was inserted, the sticky ends joined, and the recombinant plasmid was introduced into E. coli through a chemical transformation method Cohen had developed. The bacteria reproduced, copying the foreign gene as if it were their own.

The second experiment crossed a fundamental barrier. In 1974, Boyer and Cohen inserted frog ribosomal RNA genes into E. coli. For the first time, genetic information had flowed across kingdoms of life. The bacteria expressed amphibian genes. Life's most fundamental boundary—the species barrier—had been breached.

The implications were staggering. Scientists themselves recognized the danger. In July 1974, a group including Boyer and Cohen called for a voluntary moratorium on certain recombinant DNA experiments. The famous Asilomar Conference in February 1975 established safety guidelines that balanced research freedom with containment protocols.

The cascade from GMOs transformed multiple industries. Genentech, founded by Boyer in 1976, used genetically modified bacteria to produce human insulin, approved by the FDA in 1982 as the first biotech drug. Agriculture followed: herbicide-resistant crops, insect-resistant corn, and vitamin-enhanced rice emerged from laboratories worldwide. By 2026, over 190 million hectares of GM crops are planted annually.

Path dependence favored bacterial expression systems over alternatives. E. coli was well-understood, grew quickly, and was already present in labs worldwide. When other organisms—yeast, mammalian cells, plants—were eventually engineered, the conceptual framework and legal precedents established with bacteria guided their development.

The 1973 publication "Construction of biologically functional bacterial plasmids in vitro" is considered a landmark in biotechnology history. Cohen and Boyer shared numerous awards but, controversially, never received the Nobel Prize for their foundational work. Their patents, however, generated over $300 million for Stanford and UCSF.

By 2026, genetically modified organisms are everywhere: in medicine, agriculture, industrial manufacturing, and research. The bacteria that first expressed frog genes in a Stanford lab became the ancestors of an industry worth hundreds of billions of dollars annually.