The chemical compound ethyl methyl sulfonate (EMS) is used in laboratory research to mutate plants, yeasts and other organisms. EMS is a highly carcinogenic substance, and researchers have to use fume hoods and decontaminate the working area carefully.
The mutagenesis protocols consist of complex, timed, repeated processes. Through experimentation, scientists have produced methods of achieving certain results. For example, the Cook Laboratory of the University of California uses a special EMS protocol to mutate the seeds of the plant M. truncatula, while the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York has developed an EMS protocol for yeast.
Protocols are legal properties of the people and entities who created them. Research on mutagenesis may lead to valuable, permanent traits in plants and organisms that can be marketed.