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Moderated conference on GMOs in the pipeline, hosted by the FAO Biotechnology Forum in 2012

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Tue, 13 Nov 2012 16:45:07 +0100
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[Thanks to Pascal Tillie for the very interesting and relevant message below. I remind participants that all messages from the conference are available on the web, at https://listserv.fao.org/cgi-bin/wa?A1=ind1211&L=Biotech-Room2-L&O=D&H=0&D=1&T=1 . Also, all messages are numbered chronologically. If during the conference you notice that you are missing any messages and wish to receive them, just contact me at [log in to unmask] ...Moderator].



My name is Pascal Tillie, I am a researcher at the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) which is one of the Joint Research Centres of the European Commission. I hold a PhD in Agricultural Economics and I am part of a group in IPTS whose general research focus is on the impacts of GM crops.



Recently we have been reviewing the pipeline for GM crops that present benefits for animal nutrition. This was done for the purpose of a forthcoming publication in a book, to which we were invited to contribute. This message is based on this research. We only considered in our research the events for which a least one clear "proof of concept" exists. By proof of concept we mean a publication of results, field and/or feeding trials conducted, or a patent registered. Most of the GM events in the pipeline that we identified are not specifically developed for developing countries, but some are:



- a GM cassava with a high protein content is under development in the USA and trials have been conducted in Porto Rico. The primary objective of this GM event funded by a private foundation is to improve the nutritional quality of cassava, for people in Sub-Saharan Africa where it is one of the major staple crops [reference 1].



- Two GM maize events are being developed in China. One provides a grain enriched in lysine [reference 2], the other has a lower phytate content [reference 3]. Less phytate in crops has nutritional, economic and environmental benefits. This latter GM event has been granted its biosafety certificate, and is approved for commercial cultivation in Shandong, while the development stage of the former less clear.



- GM rapeseed: At least two events under development in China by public institutions (high lysine [reference 4] and low phytate [reference 5]) but to our knowledge no field trials were conducted.



- GM rice: Research is conducted in China to develop a lysine-rich event [reference 6] and a low phytate one [reference 7]. They are rather in the first stage of development and no commercial release should be expected before 5 years.



- There is an important research effort currently seeking to obtain a GM sorghum (the Africa Biofortified Sorghum Project, http://biosorghum.org) with enhanced nutritional characteristics, primarily for human but also animal nutrition [reference 8]. This project involves both public and private institutions, from developing (notably South Africa) and developed countries. The event under research would be high in lysine, low in phytate, and would have a better digestibility. The first product is expected to be commercially available by 2017.



- Three different GM soybean events with a low phytate content are under research in China, but their stage of development is rather unclear [references 9, 10, 11]. Apparently no field trials have been undergone.



- Recent research results for a GM wheat with an improved lysine content developed by a public institute in China have been published [reference 12], but at this stage no cultivation should be expected in the following years.



Note, most of the quality traits that are relevant for animal nutrition also carry benefits for human nutrition. Only some are very specific to animal nutrition. For instance both the cassava and the Africa Biofortified Sorghum Project cases listed above are primarily intended for human nutrition; however they will also benefit animals that would be fed with such crops.



This review of the pipeline for GM crops with quality traits (nutritional benefit) confirms the dominant position of China as a developer of GM crops among developing countries. All of the events cited here are being developed in public institutes. For most of them, the route to commercialization is still long, but this gives an insight of the dynamism of the Chinese research institutes, despite of the careful and conservative position of the authorities regarding the commercial release of GM crops intended for food.



Pascal Tillie

European Commission

Joint Research Centre (JRC)

Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS)

Edificio EXPO

C/ Inca Garcilaso, 3

E - 41092 Sevilla

Spain

Tel: +34 954 487 162

Fax: +34 954 488 434

Pascal.Tillie (at) ec.europa.eu 



References:



1. Abhary, M., et al., Transgenic biofortification of the starchy staple cassava (Manihot esculenta) generates a novel sink for protein. PLoS ONE, 2011. 6(1): p. e16256.

2. Yu, J., et al., Seed-specific expression of a lysine rich protein sb401 gene significantly increases both lysine and total protein content in maize seeds. Molecular Breeding, 2004. 14(1): p. 1-7.

3. Chen, R., et al., Transgenic maize plants expressing a fungal phytase gene. Transgenic Research, 2008. 17(4): p. 633-643.

4. Wang, J., et al., Transformation of LRP gene into Brassica napus mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens to enhance lysine content in seeds. Genetika, 2011. 47(12): p. 1616-21.

5. Peng, R.-H., et al., Codon-modifications and an endoplasmic reticulum-targeting sequence additively enhance expression of an Aspergillus phytase gene in transgenic canola. Plant Cell Reports, 2006. 25(2): p. 124-132.

6. Li, K., et al., Analysis on T4 progeny of transgenic rice with lysine-rich protein gene (sb401) mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation. Chine Journal of Rice Science, 2008. 22(2): p. 131-136.

7. Liu, Q.-q., et al., Transgenic expression of the recombinant phytase in rice (Oryza sativa). Rice Science, 2006. 13(2): p. 79-84.

8. Zhao, Z.-y., The Africa Biofortified Sorghum Project– Applying biotechnology to develop nutritionally improved sorghum for Africa. Biotechnology and sustainable agriculture 2006 and beyond, Z. Xu, et al., Editors. 2007, Springer Netherlands. p. 273-277.

9. Gao, X., et al., Phytase expression in transgenic soybeans: stable transformation with a vector-less construct. Biotechnology Letters, 2007. 29(11): p. 1781-1787.

10. Li, G., et al., Functional analysis of an Aspergillus ficuum phytase gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its root-specific, secretory expression in transgenic soybean plants. Biotechnology Letters, 2009. 31(8): p. 1297-1303.

11. Yang, S., et al., Transgenic soybean with low phytate content constructed by Agrobacterium transformation and pollen-tube pathway. Euphytica, 2011. 177(3): p. 375-382.

12. Sun, X.-b., et al., Transfer of high lysine gene Cflr into wheat and analysis for protein and lysine content in transgenic wheat seeds. Jiangsu Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 2010. 6: p. 1162-1169.



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