The Nation - News from Aug. 19, 1987

Modern techniques of genetic engineering are “powerful and safe” and no more dangerous than selective breeding techniques used for thousands of years, said a report from the council of the National Academy of Sciences. A recombinant DNA modified organism “is like a breeder’s new variety of flower,” said the report by a committee of five experts. Scientists can change the genetic material, or DNA, of plants or bacteria by using special enzymes to snip out genes from one DNA molecule and splice them into another of a different species. But “a wise balance between the thrust of innovation and the restraint of regulation” is needed, the report said.