Contents - Faperta

438 Biotechnological Approaches for Pest Management and Ecological Sustainability
pollen dissemination are important. The anticipated target and nontarget organisms
with which the transgenic plant will interact need to be determined. Information
should be also recorded whether the transgenic plant would become a better or worse
host. The risk to the environment includes harmful effects on the benefi cial nontarget
organisms.
Interaction Between the Transgenic Plants and the Environment
It is important to describe the invasiveness of the transgenic plant in the wild habitat,
ability to propagate sexually and asexually, possibility of transferring the transgene to the
same or related species, or to microorganisms, and the consequences of gene transfer.
Control, Monitoring, and Waste Treatment
The containment of the transgenic plants from the tissue culture, growth room, and greenhouse
are covered by good laboratory practice. Care should be exercised so that pollen and
seed from the laboratory-produced plants do not escape outside the facilities. The plants
should be labeled properly, and there should be no mixing between the transgenic plants.
A high level of quality control is needed over the DNA sequences, gene constructs, transgenic
plants, and the experimental results. Growing plants in the greenhouse involves the
same level of controls as in the laboratory. The greenhouse should be properly designed to
keep out insects and pollen. The facilities should be run under the control of a biosafety
committee, and the level of containment should depend on the type of transgenic plants.
The greenhouse should have a controlled and fi ltered airfl ow system, control of water outlets,
and sterilization. Autoclaving of plant and soil material coming out of the greenhouse
is very important.
Post Release Monitoring of the Transgene
Once the transgenic plants are released into the environment, there is a movement of
pollen, seed, and the plants outside the immediate environment of release (Sharma et al.,
2002a, 2002b). It is important to monitor the transgenes in the environment after the release
for its effi cacy in controlling the target pest, emergence of secondary pest problems,
development of resistance, and the effi ciency with which it is possible to destroy the plant
material, in case it becomes necessary. Effi cient methods of detecting the transgenic plants
and the transgene in nontarget species is necessary. It can be done by visual marker (e.g.,
b-glucorinidase) or a selectable marker (e.g., herbicide/antibiotic resistance, or molecular
analysis (e.g., PCR, southern hybridization, and ELISA). If necessary, methods of destroying
the plant material at the end of the experiment should be described.
Commercial releases follow once the results of experimental releases have been found to
be satisfactory. The aim of risk analysis is to fi nd out the changes in experimental protocol
and the method by which transgenic plants may be confi ned in order to minimize risk to
the environment and human health. The risk assessment should be carried out by the
multidisciplinary biosafety committee with expertise in molecular biology, environmental
science, entomology, pathology, and any other fi eld as appropriate. At this stage, the
governmental authorities, environmental groups, social activists, NGOs, and progressive
farmers may be involved to make the process transparent, and assure the public that care
is being taken to minimize risks to the environment and human health. The institute