GM WHEAT
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Group Leader: Celia Jong Members: Soon Wanli Raine Ong Kimberly Tan Liu Maopei Khoo Zhisin




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Our reflections for package 1 & 2! :) Toxin Usefulness of GM Crops Microbiological problems with GM wheat GM Wheat Modification Process Disadvantages of GM wheat Advantages of GM wheat Good Manufacturing Practices Retort Pouch PRODUCT RECALL
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Monday, June 28, 2010 @ 6:13 AM
Usefulness of GM Crops
Genetically Modified Wheat

  • Monsanto, one of the largest agricultural companies which have branches in many countries. Monsanto is the organization that starts researching and selling GM wheat.
  • Currently there are 448 field trials being carried out on GM wheat which are mainly under European Union and United States. Other than that, Canada, Argentina, Japan, China, Australia and Switzerland also are involved with the field trials.
  • So far, there is no cultivation of GM wheat in any of the countries.
  • Apparently, USA had already approved GM wheat as foodstuff/feed. However, there were agrobiotech concern which made Monsanto stop their plans in marketing GM wheat and currently, other countries that applied for legalization for GM wheat had also withdrawn their application.

Reasons why some of the countries reject GM Wheat
  • Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) oppose to the idea.

    The main reason is because the consumers strongly opposed due to the labeling issues to differentiate between the GM wheat and Non-GM wheat products.
  • Japan & Korea did not legalize GM wheat.

    There have been large scale opposition movements toward GM wheat and that a NO! GMO Campaign has been formed whereby there was group petition signed and formal letter submitted to the authorities in Japan, Canada and United States.



  • Latest press updates in Feb 2010 is that GM wheat is being reject by 233 consumers, farmer groups in 26 countries. The launch of “Definitive Global Rejection of GM Wheat” statement was first launched by 15 Australian, Canadian and US farmers in June 2009

Uses of GM Wheat
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@ 1:53 AM
Microbiological problems with GM wheat

The specific microbes that could affect the growth and produce of GM wheat is yet to be found. As most of the Genetically Modified food are after all resistance to disease and contamination.

But those that could possibly be linked to wheat, this is it:
(Research data are taken from GMO Compass website: http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/grocery_shopping/crops/22.genetically_modified_wheat.html)

Poisonous Fusarium infestations: New solutions with genetic engineering?

Septoria, Fusarium, and common bunt are fungal diseases that often cause problems for wheat growers. These fungal diseases can spread rapidly when conditions are mild and moist.

One disease that poses particularly serious problems is Fusarium. Infected ears will either fail to produce grains or will produce grains that are small and stunted. Problems with Fusarium, however, don’t end there. A crop affected by Fusarium infection can also contain dangerous substances that can impact the health of humans and livestock.

Certain strains of Fusarium produce mycotoxins. Mycotoxins is a general term for poisonous compounds produced by fungi, which are thought to protect germinating spores from microbial infection. Mycotoxins remain in food during processing and can lead to chronic and acute diseases. In high concentrations, they can cause nausea and vomiting. Certain Fusarium toxins are implicated in cancer and have been known to affect hormonal balances.

Right now, there is no efficient way of stopping Fusarium infection. Although management strategies using resistant cultivars, crop rotation, and chemical fungicides are helpful, they are still not enough to stop the disease when conditions are conducive to infection. Fusarium is responsible for yield losses and mycotoxin contamination in wheat grown around the world.

Genetic engineering opens the door to new strategies for managing Fusarium and other fungal diseases. Scientists are currently developing genetic approaches to conferring resistance to fungal diseases and are testing their effectiveness on wheat. Field trials are underway in many countries, including countries in Europe, to find out if experimental GM wheat plants are actually resistant to fungal infection and thereby produce grains won’t be laden with dangerous mycotoxins.

GM wheat has resistance against pathogens

• fungal resistance, in particular against infections with fusarium or mildew. Infestation of plants with these fungi can lead to contamination of the wheat products with strong toxins ( mycotoxins). Resistance against smut fungi (Ustilaginomycetes; loose smut, stinking smut).
Fungal Resistance

Fungi are responsible for causing many plant diseases. Genetic engineering is being used to create fungus resistant crops.
For some plant species (potatoes, maize, cereals, grapes) fungal infestations - e.g. blight, grey mould, or Phytophthora - can lead to significant yield losses.

Fungal diseases are usually combatted with chemical fungicides or heavy metal compounds (e.g. copper vitriol). For some crops, fungus resistant cultivars have been developed using conventional breeding methods.
Intensive work is underway to develop transgenic plants with acquired fungal resistance. So far, none of these efforts have resulted in commercially viable varieties.

Several approaches are under investigation:
• Transfering bacterial genes encoding anti-fungal enzymes, e.g. chitinase or glucanase.
• Transferring genes for anti-fungal substances already produced by some plants.
• Augmenting the hypersensitive reaction: Many plants cause individual, infected plant cells to die at the site of fungal infection, effectively stopping the infection in its tracks. This mechanism can be recruitred or enhanced by genetic engineering.

Virus resistance

Viruses cause many plant diseases and are often responsible for extensive crop losses. This makes virus resistance an important goal for crop improvement.
Although chemicals can be used to manage most plant pest and diseases, there are no practical ways of eliminating plant viral infections. In some cases, pesticides can be use to manage insects that spread viruses. Virus resistant varieties of some plants have been developed by conventional breeding techniques.
Various strategies can be used to achieve virus resistance with the aid of genetic engineering:
• Viruses are enclosed by a protein coat composed of what are known as capsid proteins. If a plant is genetically transformed with a virus' capsid protein, it can be made resistant to the respective virus. All virus resistant plants commercially grown today are based on this concept.
• Other concepts target cell to cell virus movement or virus reproduction.
• Genes taken from plants that are known to produce antiviral proteins may be transferred to crops.

Glucanase

Enzymes that break down glucanase
Glucans are important structural compounds in the cell walls of plants and fungi. Chemically, glucans are a type of carbohydrate. They consist of the same basic building blocks (monosaccharides) as starches, but the units are arranged differently.

Many microorganisms produce glucanases, which enable them to digest glucans and use them as a source of nutrients. Industrially, bacteria are used to produce glucanases on a large scale for use in applications such as beer brewing. Glucanase supplements help beer yeasts break down glucans in barley, which can often block filters. (In Germany, glucanase additives are not permitted because they do not conform to the German Beer Purity Act.)

Genes for certain glucanases (usually b-1,3-glucanases) have been transferred to plants to enable them to degrade the glucans in disease-causing fungi. Researchers are developing grapes, wheat, and barley with glucanase-conferred fungus resistance.
Genetically modified barley with a novel gene for glucanase can help improve the quality of animal feed. Some animals lack the glucanases needed to break down long chain glucanes present in barley cell walls. Therefore, poultry raised with barley without added glucanase remain small.
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Saturday, June 26, 2010 @ 9:18 PM
GM Wheat Modification Process

Genetic engineering is the insertion of a segment of DNA containing one or more genes from one organism into a chromosome of another organism. This process, when successful, allows the expression of the added gene in the host organism. The process involves using either a virus or bacterium nucleic acid as a vector of insertion, or else doing the job with a micropipette or by bio-ballistic DNA delivery with a “gene gun” (Nicholl, 1994; Ho, 1996). To be sure that the gene you are trying to insert is actually present, the added segment of DNA usually includes a “marker gene” which is most often a gene for antibiotic resistance. The organism is then grown in a culture containing the antibiotic. Only those individuals with the added segment of DNA will survive, since they are the only organisms that are resistant to the antibiotic. At least this is how desired genes are usually identified, with a marker for antibiotic resistance. So far, there have been about 50 different food crop approvals for genetically engineered varieties (U.S.FDA, 2000).

Once the desired genes are inserted into the selected organism, the new genetically engineered organism is reproduced to obtain a generation of individuals that possess the desired trait. These individuals in turn are raised and utilized with the desired gene actively functioning. Some examples are the S-adenosylmethionine hydrolase gene from a bacterium which was added to cantaloupe to control ripening, the Phosphinothricin acetyltransferase gene from another bacterium which confers Glufosinate (Roundup©- an herbicide) tolerance, and the potato that is insect resistant with the cryIIIA gene from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) sp. tenebrionis (another bacterium) (U.S.FDA, 2000).

There are many other GMOs that have been produced and are being used for crop production at this time. There are 50 examples of genetic engineering reported by the U.S.FDA (2000). These GMOs confer resistance to pesticides, more uniform ripening, resistance to insects and viruses and improved protein content of several food crops. So why are there so many protests to genetic engineering?

http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/2000/7/00.07.02.x.html


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@ 8:32 PM
Disadvantages of GM wheat

GM Food(Dis.):

• Safety
o Potential human health impacts, including allergens, transfer of antibiotic resistance markers, unknown effects

o Potential environmental impacts, including: unintended transfer of transgenes through cross-pollination, unknown effects on other organisms (e.g., soil microbes), and loss of flora and fauna biodiversity

• Access and Intellectual Property
o Domination of world food production by a few companies

o Increasing dependence on industrialized nations by developing countries

o Biopiracy, or foreign exploitation of natural resources

• Ethics
o Violation of natural organisms' intrinsic values

o Tampering with nature by mixing genes among species

o Objections to consuming animal genes in plants and vice versa

o Stress for animal

• Labeling
o Not mandatory in some countries (e.g., United States)

o Mixing GM crops with non-GM products confounds labeling attempts

• Society
o New advances may be skewed to interests of rich countries

GM Wheat (Dis.):



Environmental Risks of GM Wheat

Like conventional wheat, GM wheat can cross-pollinate with conventional wheat and some weeds—creating, in the case of Roundup Ready wheat—a superweed that cannot be destroyed with herbicide. GM wheat can also contaminate neighboring fields by traveling through the air or with small animals and birds. Conventional and organic wheat can also cross-pollinate or become mixed with GM wheat in the environment or in grain handling system. Once wheat is contaminated, it would be virtually impossible to reclaim.


Agricultural Risks of GM Wheat

A farmer who decides to plant genetically modified seeds must pay a fee and enter into a technology use agreement with the owner of the seeds, giving the farmer license to use the patented technology. Monsanto’s technology use agreement prohibits farmers from saving seeds to replant the next year or selling the seeds to another farmer to plant. The agreement also requires farmers to use specific herbicides in a company directed weed management plan. If the terms of this agreement are violated, Monsanto can impose fines as much as 120 times the technology fee paid by the farmer. This agreement releases Monsanto from liability for damages caused by the crops—leaving farmers liable if their crops contaminate a neighboring field. Monsanto has sued farmers when GM seeds were found in their crops, if the farmer did not plant or buy the seeds.


Health Risks of GM Wheat

For the most part, health risks of GM wheat are uuknown. Since no GM wheat has been released, extensive studies on the affects on human health cannot be completed. Few independant studies of the safety of any GM foods have been done. Unlike other GM grains, such as corn and soybeans, wheat is grown primarily for direct human consumption—not processed into oils or used as livestock feed. Scientists warn that the consumption of GM foods in general might result in new allergies, resistance to antibiotics, inability for the body to absorb vitamins or minerals, and other health problems. Results of studies on animals fed GM foods include: cancerous cell growth, damaged immune systems, atrophy of the liver, inhibited development of their brains and livers, inhibited growth of blood cells, false pregnancies, sterility and mysterious deaths.

The only human health study conducted found that a GM gene inserted into soybeans randomly transferred out of the soybeans and into the DNA of bacteria found in the digestive system. If this gene is allergenic or toxic to the human body its effects could last a lifetime.



WORC. (2004, September). The Problem With Genetically Modified Wheat. Retrieved June 27 2010, from: http://www.worc.org/userfiles/file/Genetically%20Modified%20Wheat.pdf



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@ 8:24 PM
Advantages of GM wheat

Benefits of GM foods
There is a need to produce inexpensive, safe and nutritious foods to help feed the world’s growing population. Genetic modification may provide:

  • Sturdy plants able to withstand weather extremes
  • Better quality food crops
  • Higher nutritional yields in crops
  • Inexpensive and nutritious food, like carrots with more antioxidants
  • Foods with a greater shelf life, like tomatoes that taste better and last longer
  • Food with medicinal (nutraceutical) benefits, such as edible vaccines – for example, bananas with bacterial or rotavirus antigens
  • Crops resistant to disease and insects and produce that requires less chemical application, such as pesticide and herbicide resistant plants: for example, GM canola.

GM advocates argue that genetically modified foods are potentially better for the environment. By using genetically engineered crops that are resistant to attack by pests or disease (insect resistant or IR), farmers and primary producers do not have to apply large amounts of pesticides and chemicals to the surrounding environment. Developing crops that are tolerant to particular herbicides (herbicide tolerant or HT) and pesticides may reduce the amount of pesticides used in food production and the residual pesticide levels in the environment.

Benefits

  • Crops
    • Enhanced taste and quality
    • Reduced maturation time
    • Increased nutrients, yields, and stress tolerance
    • Improved resistance to disease, pests, and herbicides
    • New products and growing techniques
  • Animals
    • Increased resistance, productivity, hardiness, and feed efficiency
    • Better yields of meat, eggs, and milk
    • Improved animal health and diagno`stic methods
  • Environment
    • "Friendly" bioherbicides and bioinsecticides
    • Conservation of soil, water, and energy
    • Bioprocessing for forestry products
    • Better natural waste management
    • More efficient processing
  • Society
    • Increased food security for growing populations

Better Health Channel. (2010). Genetically modified foods
Retrieve June 6, 2010, from
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Genetically_modified_foods?OpenDocument

U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research, Human Genome Program. (2009). Genetically Modified Foods and Organisms Retrieve June 6, 2010, from
http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/gmfood.shtml

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