Modern genetic techniques will help in understanding the mechanisms of insect resistance and in the development of greater resistance in the future. Weed Control Herbicide Tolerance. One of the first commercial uses of biotechnology involves the genetic improvement of crop tolerance to herbicides. Herbicide tolerance is a plant's ability to endure the effects of a herbicide at the rate normally used in agricultural production. Herbicide resistance is the ability of a plant to be unaffected at any feasible rate of herbicide application.
Most crops are resistant to one or more herbicides.
Biotechnology has provided plant scientists with additional tools to determine the chemical and genetic modes of action of many of these herbicides and also the mechanisms that account for a plant's natural tolerance or resistance to herbicides. As a result, scientists will use this knowledge to incorporate herbicide tolerance into crop plant species. Several different methods have been used successfully to develop herbicide-resistant crop varieties. This new atrazine-resistant variety of canola is currently being cultivated in Canada. A second method has been the use of cell or tissue culture to test many different lines of plants for tolerance to a specific herbicide.