In some areas where war has occurred, many explosives have remained, contaminating the local soil. One of the main pollutants is trinitrotoluene (TNT). For plants and animals, TNT is a highly toxic contaminant. If humans eat vegetables, crops, or meat containing TNT, they may cause anemia, cirrhosis, and cancer. At present, large areas of the world have been polluted by TNT. The usual method for removing TNT in soil is to burn it. However, this method of eliminating TNT pollution is expensive, and it produces ash that cannot be recycled and also produces toxic fumes. Because the incineration method still pollutes the environment to a large extent, scientists are looking for better ways to remove TNT. Recently, some British bioscientists have cultivated a type of transgenic tobacco that can absorb TNT in soil and then convert TNT into substances that are harmless to other plants and thus remove soil contamination. The decontaminating genes of these transgenic tobacco plants are derived from a bacterium in the soil that produces an enzyme that converts TNT. This transgenic tobacco was discovered by a team led by Neil Bruce of the University of Cambridge. To find a feasible method for removing TNT in soil, the Bruce team made soil samples from areas contaminated with TNT. When analyzing these soil samples, they unexpectedly discovered bacteria that lived in soil that was heavily contaminated by TNT. Why are these bacteria not poisoned? Originally, the bacteria's adaptability and evolutionary ability were particularly strong. The soils rich in TNT were not only non-toxic bacteria, but were used as the source of nitrogen by the evolved bacteria. After the researchers introduced genes related to bacteria that could eat TNT into tobacco, they discovered that GM tobacco could thrive in areas contaminated with TNT. If ordinary tobacco is grown in these areas, the roots and stems of these tobaccos are seriously poisoned until they die. If the GM tobacco is cultivated in large areas in areas contaminated with TNT, the soil will be cleaned up after a few years. The researchers also intend to introduce genes related to TNT bacteria into poplars because poplars have a stronger absorption capacity and will be more effective in eliminating environmental pollution.
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