GMO Research
Abstract: This review addresses the possible ecological effects of transgenic plants on micro-organisms in the field, hence, in the phytosphere and in the soil matrix. The important steps involved in the interaction between plant DNA and bacteria and the factors that influence the horizontal gene transfer (HGT) process will be discussed. HGT is a process …
Abstract: Roundup is a postemergence herbicide acting on the synthesis of amino acids and other important endogenous chemicals in plants. Roundup is commonly used in agriculture, forestry, and nurseries for the control or destruction of most herbaceous plants. The present study shows that Roundup is able to induce a dose-dependent formation of DNA adducts in …
Abstract: We analyzed the consequences of aerial spraying with glyphosate added to a surfactant solution in the northern part of Ecuador. A total of 24 exposed and 21 unexposed control individuals were investigated using the comet assay. The results showed a higher degree of DNA damage in the exposed group (comet length = 35.5 μm) …
Abstract: Integration of transgenic DNA into the plant genome was investigated in 13 transgenic oat (Avena sativa L.) lines produced using microprojectile bombardment with one or two cotransformed plasmids. In all transformation events, the transgenic DNA integrated into the plant genome consisted of intact transgene copies that were accompanied by multiple, rearranged, and/or truncated transgene …
Abstract: The work is focused on the investigation of the influence of DNA from some GMO lines on E. coli. PCR of colonies, that were grown with the presence of genetically modified DNA, has shown that colonies of one of the stamps selectively accumulate some of the artificially inserted DNA fragments. Keywords: Genetically Modified Plants, …
Abstract: The present study was undertaken to evaluate the genotoxic and oxidative stress modulatory effects of commercial formulation of glyphosate-based herbicide (Roundup®) in freshwater fish Channa punctatus. Three sublethal test concentrations of the herbicide viz., SL-I (1/10th of LC50 = ∼3.25 mg L−1), SL-II (1/8th of LC50 = ∼4.07 mg L−1) and SL-III (1/5th of …
Abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the uptake of dietary DNA into blood, kidney, and liver of salmon, and to determine the DNA fragment size if dietary DNA was detected. Salmon in groups of five fish were force-fed a feed containing a high copy number of three polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified …
Abstract: The inclusion of genetically modified (GM) plants in the human diet has raised concerns about the possible transfer of transgenes from GM plants to intestinal microflora and enterocytes. The persistence in the human gut of DNA from dietary GM plants is unknown. Here we study the survival of the transgene epsps from GM soya …
Abstract: This review shall give policy makers and risk managers the rational basis to widen the view on the risk assessment of genetically modified plants and therefore to include potential impacts associated with synthetic DNA/RNA fragments of genetically modified plants to the human immune system. Such risks are so far excluded form the risk assessment …
Abstract: Transformation of Streptococcus gordonii DL1 by free DNA was studied in human saliva. Competent S. gordonii could be transformed in vitro with plasmid DNA that had been taken into the human mouth. Transformation also occurred with a plasmid that cannot replicate in S. gordonii, but that has a region of chromosomal homology, by integration …
Abstract: Competitive PCR was used to monitor the survival of a 520-bp DNA target sequence from a recombinant plasmid, pVACMC1, after admixture of the plasmid with freshly sampled human saliva. The fraction of the target remaining amplifiable ranged from 40 to 65% after 10 min of exposure to saliva samples from five subjects and from …
Abstract: Detailed molecular characterisation of transgene loci is a requirement for gaining regulatory approval for environmental release of genetically modified crops. In cereals, it is generally accepted that Agrobacterium-mediated transformation generates cleaner transgene loci with lower copy number and fewer rearrangements than those generated by biolistics. However, in wheat there has been little detailed analysis …
Abstract: The mitochondrial genomes of some Phaseolus species contain a fragment of chloroplast trnA gene intron, named pvs-trnA for its location within the Phaseolus vulgaris sterility sequence (pvs). The purpose of this study was to determine the type of transfer (intracellular or horizontal) that gave rise to pvs-trnA. Using a PCR approach we could not …
Abstract: Previous studies had shown that recombinant DNA can be detected for several months in soil after the deposition of litter from transgenic (tg) plants. Here we show by PCR monitoring of field releases of tg sugar beet plants that during the growth of the plants the soil close to the plants and also plant …
Abstract: The inclusion of genetically modified (GM) foods in the human diet has caused considerable debate. There is concern that the transfer of plant-derived transgenes to the resident intestinal microflora could have safety implications. For these gene transfer events to occur, the nucleic acid would need to survive passage through the gastrointestinal tract. The aim …
Abstract: Roundup® is a glyphosate-based herbicide widely used with both agricultural and non-agricultural purposes, which has been demonstrated to represent a risk to non-target aquatic organisms, namely fish. Among the described effects to fish, genotoxicity has been pointed out as one of the most hazardous. However, the genotoxic mechanisms of Roundup® as well as the …
Abstract: A glyphosate containing pesticide impedes at 10 mM glyphosate the G2/M transition as judged from analysis of the first cell cycle of sea urchin development. We show that formulated glyphosate prevented dephosphorylation of Tyr 15 of the cell cycle regulator CDK1/cyclin B in vivo, the end point target of the G2/M cell cycle checkpoint. …
Abstract: The presence of the recombinant cp4 epsps gene from Roundup Ready (RR) corn and RR soybean was quantified using real-time PCR in soil samples from a field experiment growing RR and conventional corn and soybean in rotation. RR corn and RR soybean cp4 epsps persisted in soil for up to 1 year after seeding. …
Abstract: Glyphosate (G) is the largest selling herbicide worldwide; the most common formulations (Roundup, R) contain polyoxyethyleneamine as main surfactant. Recent findings indicate that G exposure may cause DNA damage and cancer in humans. Aim of this investigation was to study the cytotoxic and genotoxic properties of G and R (UltraMax) in a buccal epithelial …
Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the possibility of DNA sequences from genetically modified plants to persist in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. PCR analysis and transformation assays were used to study DNA persistence and integrity in various ex vivo and in vivo systems using gnotobiotic rats. DNA studied was either plasmid DNA, naked plant DNA …
Abstract: We studied the toxic effects of glyphosate in vitro on HepG2 cells exposed for 4 and 24 h to low glyphosate concentrations likely to be encountered in occupational and residential exposures [the acceptable daily intake (ADI; 0.5 μg/mL), residential exposure level (REL; 2.91 μg/mL) and occupational exposure level (OEL; 3.5 μg/mL)]. The assessments were …
Abstract: Aim. To estimate the likelihood of transfer of kanamycin‐resistance gene (nptII) from commercially available genetically modified (GM) plants. Methods and Results. Acinetobacter sp. BD413 carrying a plasmid containing an inactivated nptII gene was treated with DNA derived from GM potato and GM papaya. Kanamycin‐resistant transformants were obtained at a frequency of 10–30 μg−1 DNA. Calculation …
Abstract: Different transgenic plants of Brassica napus, Brassica nigra, Datura innoxia and Vicia narbonensis expressing the hph gene under the control of the 35s promoter were co-cultivated with mycelial material of Aspergillus niger in microcosms under sterile conditions. A significantly higher number of hygromycin B-resistant colonies of re-isolated fungi was obtained if compared with co-cultures …
Abstract: A culture of denial over the horizontal spread of genetically modified nucleic acids prevails in the face of direct evidence that it has occurred widely when appropriate methods and molecular probes are used for detection. Keywords: genetically modified (GM) crops, gene transfer, antibiotic resistance, denial Citation: Ho, M.W., 2014. Horizontal transfer of GM DNA …
Abstract: Monitoring of genetically modified (GM) crops has been emphasized to prevent their potential effects on the environment and human health. Monitoring of the inadvertent dispersal of transgenic maize in several fields and transport routes in Korea was carried out by qualitative multiplex PCR, and molecular analyses were conducted to identify the events of the …
