GMO

The term GMO refers to any organism that has been genetically engineered and includes plants (algae, grasses, flowers, food crops, trees) animals (insects, fish, mammals), fungi, bacteria, and viruses.

Often different terms used to describe the same, mostly GM, GE and transgenic.

Other than for pure research purposes, GMOs are being developed and produced for commercial use.
In all of this, distinctions should be made between ‘contained use’ and ‘environmental release’ for risk assessment purposes.
Contained use: (refer to definition in biosafety protocol): not in contact with environment
Environmental or open release: anything from field trials to large scale commercial release: in direct contact with environment.

There are currently four main GM/GE [which should we use? What do you think?] crops commercially grown, which are:
Maize (corn)
Soya (soybean)
Oilseed rape (canola)
Cotton

Other crops include:
Rice
Brinjal (ocra)
Papaya

For more detail of GM crops being field trialed or registered for commercial production, please consult the relevant databases of countries in question. A few of those are listed below. (link).

Concerning GMO regulations, risk assessment procedures and application on approval/rejection processes, labelling requirement and liability regimes, they differ from country to country. The two processes/regimes that are internationally recognised are the biosafety protocol and Codex Alimentarius guidelines (see below).

[There are many national and international processes and regulations dealing with GMOs, their risks and ]

Two main traits used: herbicide tolerance and pesticide/insecticide production (Bt toxins)
Single gene traits.

Traits for tolerance to abiotic stresses (flood, heat, drought, cold) have proven difficult to engineer into plants, especially since these traits are either multi-gene traits or the genes involved code for proteins that are involved multiple functions. These traits are still under investigation.

Claims for GM to feed the world by providing stress tolerant crops or crops that can be grown on poor soils have been repeatedly made since the mid 1990s. The same claims are currently being made in the face of global warming and the pressure on agricultural land and production. Whilst no such GM crops have become available for the last 15 years, results have been achieved by breeding technologies and change in agricultural practices [maybe this is going too far, as now I would need to talk about ISTAAD as well as the various flood and drought resistant crops developed by non-GM …. What do you think?]
Plants (and other organisms) are being engineered for production of:
Food
Feed
Fibres
Oils
Industrial compounds
Pharmaceuticals
Agrofuels
Biomass/sugars (carbohydrates) for feed in synthetic biology
(bioremediation)

*Antje, I wonder whether to include here one of my power point slides (or an altered version) to show the issues and concerns linked to GMOs. (looks a bit blurry. Let me know if you can’t see it and I’ll send it separately as a slide).

Risks:

Difference if organism is within a containment facility or outside
If stationary or mobile
If it produces pollen, seed, spores, sperm, eggs, ..
If sexually compatible wild or cultivated relatives are around
Lifespan (e.g. small annual flower or annual crop vs. long lived forest trees)

Risk Assessment and uncertainties:
Expected & predicted
Unexpected
Unpredictable
Direct & indirect
[I still need to write a little para on that …. ]

**Questions:
1) should we have a different page/ sheet with all the relevant questions/aspects concerning risk assessment – rather than trying to weave it in here?

2) How should we construct this page so that people also see the links to GE trees, rice and soya? An extra box on the right?

3) Any other ideas for this page?

Website links to GMO Registers:
Europe
(UK)
US

Processes/Regulations (with links):
Biosafety Protocol
Codex Alimentarius Guidelines