Transgenic Yellow Poplar

Linked to Phytoremediation

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Transgenic (genetically modified) yellow poplar trees grow in the laboratory of geneticist Richard Meagher at the University of Georgia. Researchers at UGA engineered a strain of yellow poplar capable of growing in soil contaminated with mercury and converting the metal into a less harmful form. The process of using plants to remove toxins from the environment is called phytoremediation.

Photograph by Sarah E. McKee, New Georgia Encyclopedia

Transgenic Yellow Poplar

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