SNIPPITS AND SNAPPITS: GENETIC ENGINEERING ~ UNPREDICTABLE RESULTS

Thursday 5 November 2009

GENETIC ENGINEERING ~ UNPREDICTABLE RESULTS

From one of Dr. Irina Ermakova's studies investigating the safety of genetically modified (GM) soy. The smaller rat on the right was fed GM soy. The rat on the left was not. The rats are the same age and from the same litter.

What are we Really eating these days?

By Craig Holdrege

05 November, 2009
THE NATURE INSTITUTE

The Nature Institute in New York has put together a shocking list of the nontarget effects of genetic manipulation. And as Craig Holdrege, the project director, says in his introductory remarks:

Much of the public debate concerning genetically modified organisms, their widespread use in animal and human food, and their impact upon the environment could be raised to an entirely new and more productive level if certain undisputed facts were more widely known.

Putting the matter plainly: when foreign genes are introduced into an organism, creating a transgenic organism (commonly called a genetically modified or genetically engineered organism), the results for the organism and its environment are almost always unpredictable. The intended result may or may not be achieved in any given case, but the one almost sure thing is that unintended results ~ nontarget effects ~ will also be achieved.

In simple words,

genetic engineering

leads to unpredictable results.

The upheavals that are caused, in plant genome or the plant's morphology or physiology or the impact on environment, are all well documented but kept hidden from the public glare.

I think the time has come when people should sit back and ascertain whether they are willing to take the risk for the sake of the resulting profits accruing to the GM company. They need to know what has gone wrong and where, and how will it impact their food supply, their health, and the environment they live in.

Take a look at the list below, try to grasp what it means, and then take a deep breath, and think: Is Bt brinjal that is being pushed onto your plate the right kind of food that you should be consuming? Is it really safe? Safe for your health, your environment and your children's future??

Nontarget Effects of Genetic Manipulation Type of Nontarget Effect: Environmental

beet_001: Weed seed resources for birds were reduced in glyphosate-resistant beet production.

bentgrass_001: Spread of herbicide-resistance from genetically modified creeping bentgrass into the wild.

canola_002: Experimental crosspollination between transgenic herbicide-resistant canola and wild field mustard led to highly fertile, herbicide-resistant wild field mustard.

canola_003: Transgenes that have escaped from glyphosate-resistant canola can persist in the wild.

canola_004: Conventional, certified canola seedlots were contaminated with genetically engineered seeds.

canola_005: Herbicide-resistant canola volunteers still detected after ten years of stringent control.

cotton_001: Bt cotton showed decreased ability to kill cotton bollworm larvae during flower development and flowering.

cotton_002: Bt cotton had altered protein metabolism and produced less insecticidal toxin in leaves when subjected to high temperatures during boll formation.

cotton_003: Increased resistance to Bt toxin is found in some populations of cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa zea).

maize_003: Monarch butterfly larvae exposed to anthers from Bt maize ate less and gained less weight.

maize_004: Byproducts from Bt maize enter streams, and in feeding experiments affected stream insects.

maize_006: Bt maize had changed lipid composition in stems; also, lipid composition in soil was altered, and soil respiration was reduced.

rice_001: Genes escaped from cultivated GM rice to its weedy and wild relatives.

root nodule bacteria_001: Root nodule bacteria with Bt transgene tended to displace non-manipulated bacteria in legume root nodules.

soybean_001: Herbicide-resistant soybean plants were shorter, with less chlorophyll, lower weight, and increased susceptibility to stem-splitting at high temperatures.

sugarcane_001: Lectin transgene for stemborer resistance alters growth of sugarcane.

sunflower_001: Wild sunflowers with transgene for Bt toxin produced more seeds than normal wild sunflowers.

weed resistance_001: Increased planting of glyphosate-resistant crops and application of glyphosate causes increase in glyphosate-resistant weed species.

Type of Nontarget Effect: Genetically Modified Plants Affecting Food and Feed

maize_002: Atlantic salmon fed Bt corn had altered enzyme activity in liver and intestine as well as altered proportions and numbers of different white blood cells.

pea_001: Peas engineered to be weevil-resistant elicited immune reactions in mice.

pea_002: Peas engineered to be weevil-resistant had lowered starch digestibility.

potato_002: Inulin-storing potatoes had higher alkaloid content and pigs fed on them had reduced daily weight gain.

soybean_002: Diet containing glyphosate-resistant soybeans affected the nuclei of liver cells in mice.

soybean_006: Transgenic DNA from glyphosate-resistant soybeans was detected in the intestinal flora of humans.

Type of Nontarget Effect: Physiological

alfalfa_001: Alfalfa with corn transgenes for anthocyanin (red-purple pigment) production was not visibly altered or changed dependent on different light and temperature conditions.

alfalfa_002: Plant height and flowering were altered in alfalfa genetically engineered to reduce lignin content.

apple_001: Apples over-expressing a fruit-ripening enzyme lacked flowers and had malformed stomata and altered composition of cell walls.

arabidopsis_ 001: Plants producing a biodegradable polyester were smaller, never produced seeds and showed severe changes in metabolism.

arabidopsis_ 002: Suppression of DHS enzyme in Arabidopsis (a mustard plant) was associated with enlarged leaves, greater root mass, and enhanced seed yield.

arabidopsis_ 003: Overexpression of phytoene synthase gene in Arabidopsis resulted in delayed germination, increased levels of chlorophyll, and changes in relative levels of carotenoids.

barley_001: Barley expressing a heat-stable enzyme showed highly variable expression of the enzyme, an anomalous distribution of expression in the grain, and dramatically reduced weight of individual grains.

beet_002: Glyphosate-resistant sugar beets became more susceptible to root rot when sprayed with glyphosate.

canola_001: Canola plants over-expressing a bacterial phytoene synthase gene also had a reduced level of chlorophyll, changed structure of plastids, changed composition of fatty acids, and delayed germination.

cotton_001: Bt cotton showed decreased ability to kill cotton bollworm larvae during flower development and flowering.

cotton_002: Bt cotton had altered protein metabolism and produced less insecticidal toxin in leaves when subjected to high temperatures during boll formation.

cotton_004: Glyphosate-resistant cotton showed abnormal reproductive development when sprayed with glyphosate.

maize_001: Bt maize has higher lignin content.

maize_005: Bt maize varieties matured more slowly and had on average lower grain yield and higher grain moisture content than conventional varieties.

maize_006: Bt maize had changed lipid composition in stems; also, lipid composition in soil was altered, and soil respiration was reduced.

pea_001: Peas engineered to be weevil-resistant elicited immune reactions in mice.

pineapple_001: Pineapple plants with transgenes for fungus and herbicide resistance had altered biochemical make-up.

potato_001: Potatoes with altered sugar metabolism had changed levels of many metabolites, some not thought to be associated with sugar metabolism.

potato_002: Inulin-storing potatoes had higher alkaloid content and pigs fed on them had reduced daily weight gain.

potato_003: Potatoes genetically modified to store more starch stored less starch.

potato_004: Insect-resistant transgenic potatoes had less foliage and altered levels of leaf-glycoalkaloids .

potato_005: Potatoes with transgene for virus resistance were variably resistant, and some lines without the target gene nevertheless became highly resistant.

root_nodule_ bacteria_ 001: Root nodule bacteria with Bt transgene tended to displace non-manipulated bacteria in legume root nodules.

soybean_001: Herbicide-resistant soybean plants were shorter, with less chlorophyll, lower weight, and increased susceptibility to stem-splitting at high temperatures.

soybean_003: Glyphosate-resistant soybeans had lower yields.

soybean_004: Root colonization of glyphosate-resistant soybeans by pathogenic Fusarium fungi increased with glyphosate application.

soybean_005: Glyphosate-resistant soybeans have altered root nodules when sprayed with glyphosate.

sugarcane_002: Sugarcane engineered to reduce polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity had greater PPO activity, even without the transgene.

tobacco_002: Transgenic tobacco with resistance to bleaching herbicides had altered composition of carotenoids.

tomato_001: Tomato plants overexpressing phytoene synthase gene were stunted in growth.

tomato_002: Flavonol-enriched tomatoes had altered levels of at least fifteen other substances.

tomato_003: Suppression of DHS gene in tomatoes was associated with lack of fruiting, altered leaf morphology, higher rate of photosynthesis and other changes.

tomato_004: Transgenic tomatoes altered with a marker gene construct showed significant changes in morphological and physiological characteristics.

wheat_001: Wheat transformed with a high-molecular- weight glutenin gene showed irregular expression of glutenin and changed its expression levels over subsequent generations.

wheat_002: Wheat with transgene for low-molecular- weight glutenin showed anomalies in glutenin production and some plants had reduced levels of other storage proteins.

wheat_003: Spring wheat with scab-resistance transgene was not scab resistant and showed localized death of leaf tissue.

wheat_004: Wheat expressing transgenic glutenin shows reduction in yield, varying production of glutenin, and altered morphology.

Nontarget Effects of Genetic Manipulation

Type of Nontarget Effect: Morphological

alfalfa_002: Plant height and flowering were altered in alfalfa genetically engineered to reduce lignin content.

apple_001: Apples over-expressing a fruit-ripening enzyme lacked flowers and had malformed stomata and altered composition of cell walls.

arabidopsis_ 001: Plants producing a biodegradable polyester were smaller, never produced seeds and showed severe changes in metabolism.

arabidopsis_ 002: Suppression of DHS enzyme in Arabidopsis (a mustard plant) was associated with enlarged leaves, greater root mass, and enhanced seed yield.

cotton_004: Glyphosate-resistant cotton showed abnormal reproductive development when sprayed with glyphosate.

cotton_005: Fruiting morphology was altered when glyphosate-resistant cotton was sprayed with glyphosate.

dandelion_001: Dandelions manipulated to have compound leaves showed irregular leaf form and did not flower.