Contents - Faperta

444 Biotechnological Approaches for Pest Management and Ecological Sustainability
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the United Nations Industrial Organization
(UNIDO), and the World Health Organization (WHO), and guidelines for handling
and release of genetically modifi ed organisms have been published by several agencies
(UNIDO, 1991; Tzotzos, 1995).
Potential effects of the transformation process should continue to be taken into consideration
in the safety assessment, and phenotypic characteristics should be compared
between foods derived from genetically modifi ed plants and their comparators. These will
include, but may not be limited to, composition, nutritional value, allergenicity, and toxicity.
It will be important to defi ne the growing conditions of the comparative plants, the scope of
the comparisons, and the acceptable margins of measured differences. It may not be necessary
or feasible to subject all genetically modifi ed foods to the full range of evaluations,
but the conditions that have to be satisfi ed should be defi ned. Safety assessments should
make use of new profi ling techniques such as microarray technology for detailed studies
of mRNA expression, quantitative two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry
for protein analysis, and meta bolomic analyses to look at changes in all metabolites
and metabolic intermediates. Application of such techniques to characterize the
differences between the genetically modifi ed crop and the appropriate comparator should
help provide a rigorous scientifi c basis for biosafety of food from transgenic plants.
Sometimes, the genetically modifi ed food products include components that are deliberately
introduced by genetic modifi cation. In this case, the genetically modifi ed food product
might be regarded as “substantially equivalent” to its conventional counterpart, except for
a small number of clearly defi ned differences. Assessment is then limited to examining the
implications of the difference(s), perhaps by testing the novel components of the genetically
modifi ed plant in isolation.
Biosafety Assessment of Food from Genetically Modified Crops
Historically, crop plants improved by cross-pollination have not been subjected to risk
assessment, safety analysis, or risk management. Genetically modifi ed plants have a better
predictability of gene expression than the conventional breeding methods, and transgenes
are not conceptually different than the use of native genes or plants modifi ed by conventional
technologies. The ability to synthesize genes in the laboratory and insert them into
plants has raised some concerns by the general public. The potential of recombinant technologies
to allow a greater modifi cation than is possible with the conventional technologies
may have a greater bearing on the environment (Tiedje et al., 1989) and, therefore, the focus
of biosafety regulations needs to be on safety, quality, and effi cacy (Table 15.1) (Levin,
1988). The need and extent of safety evaluation may be based on the comparison of the new
food and the analogous food, if any, and the interaction of the transgene with the environment
(Figure 15.1). The lack of any adverse effects resulting from the production and consumption
of transgenic crops grown on more than 100 million hectares supports these
conclusions. Before food derived from a genetically modifi ed crop can be approved for
human consumption or an animal feed, it must satisfy three criteria (Moseley, 2002).
• It must be safe.
• It must satisfy the consumer.
•
It must be nutritionally adequate.