biotech news | ORB in the news
Agriculture at a crossroads
Science Magazine, 18 April 2008
A recent international assessment indicates that agricultural science and technology (S&T) is not adequately reducing hunger and poverty, improving rural livelihoods, or facilitating equitable sustainable development.
Genetic engineering is one S&T approach that was not rejected in principle; "the assessment found GM crops appropriate in some contexts, unpromising in others, and unproven in many more. The potential of GM crops to serve the needs of the subsistence farmer is recognized, but this potential remains unfulfilled."
Antibiotic-resistant soil bacteria in transgenic fields
PNAS, 11 March 2008
If antibiotic resistance genes were to move from transgenic plants to soil bacteria, there could be ecological and possibly even human health consequences. However, this study shows that when the soil bacteria in transgenic and non-transgenic cornfields were compared, no significant differences in antibiotic resistance were observed.
Mexico farmers quietly plant banned GM corn 
Reuters, 7 March 2008
Many Mexican farmers are planting genetically engineered corn, even though they're not supposed to. It's worth it to them because worms don't eat it, and to raise a good crop they need less water and pesticides. However, the pollen from their corn can be carried for miles by the wind, and opponents fear it will cross-pollinate with native corn species and alter their genetic content.
Activists vandalize Monsanto farm and plantation forests in Brazil
CNN Money, 7 March 2008
Activists invaded a Monsanto farm in Brazil, destroying a greenhouse and a field of corn.
Monsanto, a worldwide leader in genetically modified seed development, stated that differences of opinion over genetically engineered crops "should be expressed through legal means and freedom of expression, not by attacks against people and individuals."
The invasion happened four days after hundreds of members of the same group invaded a Stora Enso corporate tree farm near Brazil's border with Uruguay to protest the planting of trees to feed paper mills. In that case, police fired rubber bullets to repel the demonstrators, triggering protests throughout southern Brazil.
Microbial populations and enzyme activities in soil in situ under transgenic corn expressing cry proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis
Journal of Environmental Quality, 20 February 2008
The soil bacteria B. thuringiensis naturally makes proteins toxic to specific types of insects. The bacterial genes that code for these proteins can be expressed in plants using recombinant DNA technology.
Some transgenic crops expressing Bt toxins release them into the soil. To determine if this impacts the health of the root environment, the soils of Bt and non-Bt corn were compared over a four-year period. No statistically significant differences in the numbers of different groups of soil microorganisms, in the enzymes involved in breaking down dead plant material, or in pH were found.
Through genetics, tapping a tree's potential as a source of energy
New York Times, 20 November 2007
Scientists are using genetic engineering to change the composition of wood with the aim of turning trees into new energy sources. Trees that produce less lignin produce more cellulose, making them useful for producing ethanol. Low-lignin GE trees need to be tested under real field conditions. 
"To mess with physiology like this, you really need to get out of the laboratory," said Steven H. Strauss, a professor of forest science at Oregon State University who has conducted field tests of transgenic trees.
Six inch tall tree: Genetic modification used to control height of trees
Science Daily, 19 June 2007
Oregon State University scientists have successfully used GE to tweak tree height, showing that it's possible to create miniature trees that look similar to normal trees. These results open the door to a wide variety of new products for the ornamental and nursery industries, if regulatory hurdles can be overcome.
"From a science perspective, this is a very interesting accomplishment and there's no doubt it could be made to work," said Steven Strauss, a professor of forest science at OSU. "But further development may be precluded by social, legal, and regulatory obstacles..."
Producing ethanol from trees
The Economist, 8 March 2007
The idea is to make ethanol, a renewable biofuel, from trees. "Treethanol" yields much more energy than is needed to produce it.
Steven Strauss, a forest biologist at Oregon State University, says that because of the great genetic variation in willows and poplars, genetic modification may not be necessary. By screening existing varieties, it ought to be possible to identify those well suited to ethanol production. Conventional breeding and cloning are very efficient when there is such a variety of species and hybrids to choose from, he says, and the tight regulation of genetically modified organisms makes using the technology expensive and time consuming.
