Transcript Genetically Modified Food Safe to eat? Playing God? By Rich Deem GMOs are Evil?

Genetically Modified Food
Safe to eat? Playing God?
By Rich Deem
GMOs are Evil?
The “Evil” of GM Foods
Frankenfish–the GMO Movie
GMO Quiz
Cultivation of GM Crops (Corn)
80
% Total Acreage
70
Global
USA
Argentina
South Africa
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
45
Acreage (million hectacres)
90
GM Corn %
40
35
GM Corn Acreage
Global
USA
Argentina
South Africa
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
Cultivation of GM Crops (Soybean)
90%
70
% Total Acreage
80%
60
70%
Global
USA
Argentina
Brazil
40
50%
40%
30
30%
10%
GM Soybeans Acres
50
60%
20%
80
Acreage (million hectacres)
100%
GM Soybeans %
Global
USA
Argentina
Brazil
0%
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
20
10
0
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
Cultivation of GM Crops (Cotton)
100%
GMO Cotton %
16
% Total Acreage
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Global
USA
China
India
0%
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
Acreage (million hectacres)
90%
14
12
GMO Cotton Acreage
Global
USA
China
India
10
8
6
4
2
0
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
Cultivation of GM Crops (Canola)
90%
GMO Canola %
Global
Canada
% Total Acreage
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
7
Acreage (million hectacres)
100%
6
GMO Canola Acreage
Global
Canada
5
4
3
2
1
0
1997 2000 2003 2006 2009
Year
Making a GMO Crop
Trans
Gene
Plant
Cells
Plant
With GM Trait
cry11B
STAB-SD
cyt1A-p
E.c. Ori
Cm
Amp
Tissue
Culture
Antibiotic
Selection
Backcross
B.t. Ori
GMO Reason 1: Pests
Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin
Toxin
Spore
Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)
Solubilization
Bt
toxin
Activation
Ingestion
Bt corn
Bt cotton
Binding to
receptor
Caterpillar
midgut cells
Toxin
monomer
Septicemia
Dead caterpillar
Cadherin
Toxin GPI-anchored Membrane
insertion
oligomer
protein
Pores lead to
osmotic cell lysis
Activation of cell
death pathway
Cell death
GMO Reason 2: Weeds
Mechanism of Herbicide Roundup
Roundup (Glyphosate)
O
HO
O
H
N
P
Shikimate Pathway
OH
OH
CO2-
CO2CH2
2-O
3PO
CH2
OH
OH
Shikimate-3-phosphate
2-O
3PO
2-O
CO2-
OH
- OC
2
- OC
2
CO2-
CH2
O
CO2-
5-Enolpyruvylshikimate3-phosphate
Pi
CO2-
O
3PO
CO2-
O
NH2
Transamination
CO2-
OH
OH
Chorismate
OH
Prephenate
Arogenate
O
OH
NH2
O
O
Phenylalanine
OH
HN
NH2
Tryptophan
HO
OH
NH2
Tyrosine
Transgenic Plants
Genetically Modified Plants
GM Trait
Crop
alfalfa
Argentine canola
bean
cantaloupe
carnation
chicory
cotton
creeping bentgrass
flax
maize
papaya
petunia
plum
Polish canola
poplar
potato
rice
rose
soybean
squash
sugar beet
sweet pepper
tobacco
tomato
wheat
Herbicide Pest
Virus Antibiotic Modified Delayed
resist. resist. resist.
resist.
Oil
ripening
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SelfLysine Bioethanol Modified Modified
fertilizing
starch
color
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Genetically Modified Flowers
“Plantimal” Flower
Transgenic Animals
AquAdvantage Salmon “Frankenfish”
7
Weight (kg)
6
5
4
AquAdvantage Salmon
Standard Salmon
Atlantic Salmon
3
2
1
Pacific
Chinook
Ocean Pout
0
0 Salmon
200
400
600
800
Days (from first feeding)
Enviropig
Glofish Electric Green Tetra
Photo credit: http://www.glofish.com/
Glofish Zebrafish
Photo credit: http://www.glofish.com/
GMO Food Studies
Claim: GMO Food is Bad for You
Longevity in the United States
Introduction of GMO Crops
80
78
76
74
Total Male
White Male
Black Male
72
70
Total Female
White Female
Black Female
68
66
Year
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
64
1993
Life expectancy at birth (years)
82
GMO vs. Non-GMO
GMO
Sugar
Non-GMO
Sugar
GMO Testing?
FDA Testing Requirements
FDA handles approval of new GMO
6% of people have some kind of food
allergy
Any artificial gene product is required to be
analyzed structurally to determine if it
matches any known allergen
Matching sequences must undergo allergy
testing
No published evidence of allergic reactions
to any GM protein
Allergenicity of GM vs. Non-GM
Soybean Protein Extract
NonGMO GMO
NonGMO
GMO
NonGMO
GMO
Clinical & Experimental Allergy
Volume 36, Issue 2, pages 238-248, 20 JAN 2006 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2005.02415.x
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2222.2005.02415.x/full#f1
Scientific Studies on the Safety
of Genetically Modified Crops
Study
GM crop GM trait
Species Conclusion
MacKenzie et al. (2007)
Malley et al. (2007)
Corn
Corn
Bt toxin
Bt toxin
rats
rats
No differences
No differences
Healy et al. (2008)
(He et al. (2008)
Corn
Corn
Bt/Roundup
Bt toxin
rats
rats
(He et al. (2009)
Corn
lysine-rich
rats
No differences
Minor differences due to flour
diet differences
No differences
Tutel'ian et al. (2008, 2009); Tyshko et
al. (2008, 2009)
Appenzeller et al. (2009)
Corn
Bt/Roundup
rats
No differences
Corn
Appenzeller et al. (2009)
Corn
Juberg et al. (2009)
Buzoianu et al. (2012)
(Schrøder et al., 2007)
Domon et al. (2009)
Corn
Corn
Rice
Rice
(McNaughton et al. (2007)
Appenzeller et al. (2008)
Soybean
Soybean
McNaughton et al. (2008)
Soybean
Delaney et al. (2008)
Soybean
Battistelli et al. (2010)
Soybean
Bt, glufosinaterats
ammonium herbicide
Roundup Ready and rats
herbicide resistance
Bt toxin
mice
Bt
pigs
Bt
rats
Japanese cedar
macaque
pollen allergens
Bt toxin
chickens
Roundup Ready and rats
other herbicide
Roundup Ready and chickens
other herbicide
herbicide,
rats
monounsaturated
oleic acid
Roundup Ready
mice
No differences
No differences
No
No
No
No
differences
differences
differences
differences
No differences
No differences
No differences
No differences
No differences in structure or
flora, some mucin differences
GMO Environmental concerns
Development of resistance in Bt crop target
organisms
Tolerance in weeds to complementary
herbicides used in GM crops.
Does Bt in pests adversely affect the pest
predators?
Can GM traits be transferred to wild, nonGM relative plants?
Economic Benefits of GMO
Bt cotton yields up to 50% higher
Pesticide costs 16%-70% less
BT corn yields 5%-25% higher
Gross margins 10%-17% higher
Marginal economic benefit for GM soybeans
Benefits for GM farming are higher in
developing countries compared with
developed countries
Estimated $7 billion/year benefit to farmers
GMOs and Christianity
GMOs and the Bible
No dietary restrictions in Christianity
Therefore no one is to act as your judge in
regard to food or drink or in respect to a
festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—
things which are a mere shadow of what is
to come; but the substance belongs to
Christ. (Colossians 2:16-17)
Orthodox Judaism does not oppose GMO
Are We Playing God?
Scientists are playing God?
Human beings have been breeding plants
for thousands of years
Genetic Modification of Corn
Genetic Modification of Carrots
Golden Rice
Vitamin A deficiency kills ~670,000
children under the age of 5 each year
Golden rice contains genetically
engineered beta-carotene, a precursor
of vitamin A
CH
3HC
CH3
CH3
3
CH3
An average serving supplies about
CH
HC
CH
CH
half theCHdaily vitamin
A requirements
β-carotene
3
3
3HC
CH3
CH3
CH3
3
3
3
COOH
Vitamin A
CH3
Photo courtesy of International Rice Research Institute
Greenpeace’s Opposition to
Golden Rice
Hawaiian Papaya Industry
Hawaiian papaya was wiped out on Oahu in
the 1950’s by PRSV
Production was moved to the big island.
PRSV infection on the big island began in
the 1970’s and had destroyed the crops by
the early 1990’s
Scientists genetically engineered the plants
to produce defective viral coat protein.
The $60,000 project saved the multi-million
dollar Hawaiian papaya industry
Pesticide Poisonings
300,000 deaths from pesticide poisoning
1,200 poisonings in California
GMOs reduce or eliminate pesticide use
GMOs allow use of less toxic herbicides
Food Sustainability
World population to rise from 7 billion to 9
billion by 2050
Limited arable land
Requires increases in productivity
GMOs can dramatically improve agricultural
productivity.
Future GMOs
Nitrogen fixing crops
Less fertilizer
Less fertilizer pollution
Drought resistant crops
Disease resistant crops
GMOs and Politics
GMO Opponents Are the Climate
Skeptics of the Left
GMO Labeling Requirements
Worldwide
GMOs and the Law
GMO and Patents
GM crops contain patented DNA technology
Licensing prevents farmers from saving and
replanting seed
Restrictions protect company patents
New DNA technology produces seed that
cannot be replanted
Patent infringement cases
Monsanto Canada v. Schmeiser
Monsanto v. Schmeiser: The
Truth
In 1997 Schmeiser “found” RoundUpresistant canola
He sprayed nearby field and found 60%
survival
Schmeiser saved the Roundup-resistant seed
separately
In 1998 Schmeiser intentionally planted an
additional 1,000 acres (out of the 1,400)
with the saved seed he knew to be Roundup
resistant
Monsanto vs. Vernon Bowman
Bowman planted Monsanto soybeans, then
a second crop from commodity soybean
Bowman saved seed from the commodity
planting and replanted it next season
Bowman wrote Monsanto, telling them
exactly what he had done!
Monsanto sued and won in district court
and the US Court of Appeals
The case is currently before the US
Supreme court
Epicyte Gene
The truth about Epicyte
Epicyte developed 5 patents
None of the patents involved antibodies to
sperm
Epicyte was purchased by Biolex
Therpeutics in 2004
Biolex sold their plant antibody system to
Synthon in April, 2012
Biolex went bankrupt in July,
2012
Five patents for Epicyte
Conclusions
GM crops and food are safe to eat
Genetic engineering technology can make
our food more nutritious and contribute to
sustainable agriculture
GM opponents use false and misleading
information to thwart GM technology
Christians should support research into GM
technologies to improve living standards in
third world countries