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GMOs Perfected Down to the Chromosome Level
Roland Piquepaille writes "If don't like the concept of 'Frankenfoods,' I have bad news for you. U.S. researchers have developed an artificial chromosome for corn plants. The Chicago Tribune reports that researchers can now make chromosomes to order. These artificial chromosomes are accepted as natural by the plants and passed through generations. As the Monsanto Company bought rights to use this mini-chromosome stacking technology in corn, cotton, soybeans, and canola, I guess we'll soon eat food made from permanently genetically modified organisms (PGMOs?)."
Not that it will be tested enough before it is grown and distributed. It wont be long before people all over the world are breathing clouds of genetically engineered pollen. Is this bad? Maybe. But is bothers me a little.
You mean like the hybrids we've been creating since the agricultural revolution?
Is there anything that company can't do? I associate that name with all things that make me nervous or irritated by this point in my life.
Nothing hides evidence like a stew. -Gus Pratt
No, seriously, if genes can be made to order, I want a Natalie Portman carrot. and before moderators mod me down as a troll, no grits are involved. I will also accept a Natalie Portman potato.
Thanks
signed,
Slashdot Anonymous Coward
Five years from release of a few of these new plant lines. Turns out the tomato causes cancer due to some unforseen chemical combo that's being manufactured. They decide to pull them all from the market. Hey, it turns out that 80% of all tomatos in the world are now this new version. But which ones? You have to test each and every plant, or just get rid of them all. And we know how hard it is to get rid of 100% of a certain type of plant. Good luck with your new cancertomatos.
Job? I don't have time to get a job! Who will sit around and bitch about being broke and unemployed then?
I had this idea yesterday (alcohol may have been involved).
You could take the genes from geckos/skinks that makes their tails fall off when they are frightened and put it into grass.
Then you could have a lawn that you could mow by going outside and shouting Bang!.
-- That which does not kill us has made its last mistake.
I'm sure that since this will all be patented, then the ability to grow it will be subject to various fees and "subscriptions" eventually. I wouldn't be surprised if eventually ou would need to buy a special chemical, without which, the wheat or whatever crop will not grow.
It's not like mistakes ever happen with this stuff either. Look at Australia with it's toad and rabbit control problems, when a species is introduced out of its normal environment. What if the GM crop wildely displaces the natural crops by "accident". The company can give the growth chemical for free at first or for a nominal fee - but later on...
This should be boycotted at all costs - Food should always have the option to be grown for free, in your backyard. Yes I think I sound a little survivalist, but this can be a slippery slope, and it's easy to fall downit.
..........FULL STOP.
The article summary is deceptive. Inserting a gene into the current genome of crop is just as permanent a change as added a new mini-chromosome. In either change the changes will be inherited by the offspring of the individual plant.
The main difference between this technology and currect methods on inserting genes is that more than one gene can be added as easily as a single gene, whereas in the previous system "stacking" multiple genes required much more effort than a single gene, since each had to be inserted individually and then combined using conventional breeding.
I for one think this technology is a step in the right direction, as it will make it easier to create artificial species barriers, which require two-five genes to be inserted, but would prevent GM crops from crossbreeding with traditional varieties in the field. THIS IS NOT TERMINATOR TECHNOLOGY! The plants would still be fertile, just only with others carried the added chromosome.
But couldn't they have found someone besides Monsanto to implement it?
is that what was once a commodity market (food) could become an intellectual property driven market.
Piracy will include growing unauthorized crops. This is not good for anyone except for companies like Monsanto.
LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
These guys sell the "terminator seeds". Grows crops once and that's it. If you wanna grow another crop, you have to buy more Monsanto seeds.
If they are selling GMO seeds it's actually a good safeguard that they are "terminator seeds". If it's just a sceme to make farmers buy more seeds every year, then let the farmers do the math and decide if it's worth the extra annual cost. As long as Monsanto isn't shutting out competition it the seed supply business, let'em sell what ever DRMed seeds they want.
We are all just people.
is that normal plant patents (at least in the US) only cover grafting, budding, cuttings, and other forms of asexual reproduction. Basically you can't patent a natural genetic variant you discover and then prevent people from using it as breeding stock.
Hence you can buy a patented rose bush, breed it with another patented rose bush, and be the exclusive patent holder of the offspring (or decide to let the offspring be patent free). This is a big check on the power of plant patents
This changes with GMOs. With GMO's, offspring which carry the artifical genetic structure are subject to the control of the patent holder. This means that farmers now have a great deal more to worry about in terms of being sued for intellectual property violations simply by growing their own seed crops. This is a large deal because it effectively decommoditizes the food crop industry and turns it into something much more similar to the proprietary software industry....
LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
Can we start splicing chromosomes with humans please? I want my catgirl, dammit. What use is bringing food to the masses when I don't have my fucking catgirl?
Marxism is the opiate of dumbasses
I guess we'll soon eat food made from permanently genetically modified organisms (PGMOs?).
I'm not sure how a PGMO differs from today's GMOs which, I believe, can pass genetic modifications to offspring (they are present in the germline). The article summary contains a bias that GMOs are somehow inherently bad. Look, lots of things in our food contains risky things, and people seem to want blame GMOs for many ills. At some level of intake everything is risky. There are tons of studies outlining why some foods are bad for you. Alcohol is bad for you. Marijuana is bad for you. BBQ is bad for you (polyaromatic hydrocarbons, other bad things in charred foods). French fries apparently contain acrylimide. Saturated fats are associated with obesity, the development of heart disease. Sugar is associated with the progression of diabetes. Salt is associated with high blood pressure, heart disease. Acidic foods (ie diet coke) are bad for your digestive system. You get the point.
How many of these do you overindulge in occasionally? Similarly, assuming all GMOs are bad for health reasons is short sighted (although they may be bad for political reasons -- that is another matter). Many foods we eat are engineered in some way, usually with a sledge hammer by classical means, no one seems to complain about that. We already use pesticides on crops, perhaps resistant GMOs might reduce pesticide use? Perhaps GMOs might have better nutritional components than their non engineered counterparts? Perhaps GMOs can be developed that make some of the risky foods in the previous paragraph less risky? GMOs should be evaluated like everything else, carefully. While I understand their fears, I wish the GMO protest community would spend a little less time worrying about GMOs and more time worrying about very real food risks (see above), heavy metals in imported goods (including foods) and the things around us that are really worth our concern.
"Everything else I ate in the 72 hours before I got so sick, I've eaten again with no problem," she said. "Frankly, I don't trust the tests."
http://www.mindfully.org/GE/GE2/StarLink-Cleared-AllergiesCDC.htm
Anyone remember this? Some people don't have the necessary enzyme to properly metabolize the Cry9c protein in genetically engineered corn.
Also, "In September 2006, PUBPAT filed formal requests with the United States Patent and Trademark Office to revoke four patents owned by Monsanto Company that the agricultural giant is using to harass, intimidate, sue - and in many cases bankrupt - American farmers."
http://www.pubpat.org/monsantovfarmers.htm
Consider that mankind really hasn't been around that long: Especially in comparison to plant-life.
Consider that mankind is 100% dependent on plant-life to survive.
Altering the genetic structure of our food may seem like a great idea in the short term for many positive reasons, including the elimination of famine.
The problem is we simply do not have the foresight to know what will happen thousands of generations after the epoch of our genetic manipulations: Not only to the plants, but to those who consume them.
Genetic diversity is good, it is necessary for survival. What happens to that diversity when a super-plant is created that dominates all the species around it? Including those that consume it? Will the only thing we can eat a thousand years from now be corn?
Most of the miracles of medicine have been gifts from nature and much of what has been discovered was right in front of us the whole time. Gee that's weird...I ate that piece of moldy bread because I was starving and now I feel better! I thought that mold was going to make me sick.
What if I wasn't starving? What if I had an abundance of bread, because that bread was genetically engineered to resist blight. Since there is no blight, I'm not hungry enough to eat moldy bread, but there isn't even any mold on the bread because mold can't grow on the genectically resistant grain it was made from.
So the whole population becomes fat and happy until a super-bug comes along and knocks out 99% and I die because I didn't eat my moldy bread.I for one would at least like to have a choice, but presently there are no incentives or laws (that I know of) motivating companies to inform you, that they have completely screwed you over, by screwing up the genetic code of what you are eating, just so they can add a few percentage points to their profits, so that the stock price will go up, so that Daddy CEO can retire next year; and that they really don't know what will happen ten years from now, but your generation seems like the perfect guinna pig.
It's important to know that I forgot what I thought I knew when I thought I knew it all:Now I don't even know whatIknow.
This development advances my Evil Plan to deploy vegetables MADE OF MEAT! Vegetarians won't know what to do! World domination will be mine! Muahahaha!
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
The problems they're attempting to solve are:
1) Plants that are resistant to pesticides.
2) Plants that are more resistant to insects.
3) Plants that are more resistant to fungus.
4) Plants that are more resistant to droughts.
5) Plants that have additional nutrients in them.
6) Plants that have higher yield.
Assuming no possibility for cross breeding (which they test the hell out of, just so that their modifications don't get out into the wild), I see no issue with these goals.
Nephilium
The wheat you eat is already a man made chromosomic monster, it's hexaploid!
\u262D = \u5350
The real danger is that this will only help Monsanto increase the number of plants they sell that are unable to produce viable seeds.
Researchers have been doing this stuff for over a decade. And there are REAL Intellectual Property issues here.
Genetically Engineered DNA sequences in many cases can be treated just like programming code.
I remember a true story from one of my Genetics Professors, Dr. Ron Van Den Bussche ( http://cas.okstate.edu/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=27&Itemid=71 )
He told our class about a genetically altered cotton strain of which he was integral in its development.
Apparently, a giant agri-industrial competitor to the giant agri-industrial company who funded the strain of cotton Dr. VDB developed,
surreptitiously obtained a reproduceable/cloneable live specimen and subsequently cloned it and used it in gross quantities for their own unlicensed use.
(I think the new strain could tolerate saltier soils and drier conditions and it grew a larger puffier bowl of cotton, oh yes, and it was Patented/Copyrighted also.)
-->Here's the really funny part, Dr. VDB and his team were expert witnesses in the intellectual property infringement lawsuit/trail against the competitor who allegedly stole the strain. (sorry, can't remember what state)
The defendants had claimed they developed the new genetic strain of cotton themselves.
This was proven blatantly false by the prosecution when Dr. VDB revealed he had spliced unique identification DNA sequences into their genetically-engineered cotton strains from a VERY Very Rare Bat species.
(which happened to be an endangered species that ONLY inhabits a single remote cave system in Texas).
Sure enough, forensic DNA testing was completed on the allegedly stolen cotton strain and it was, in fact, found to be stolen.
-Many, many, Million$ of dollars were paid by the defendant to the plaintiff.
first: both my parents do research for Monsanto and i am proud of them and the work they do, not of the company itself though
next, i think people who talk about 'Frankenfoods' are poorly informed about what contemporary GM is and isn't.
For most GM modifications you take a gene that you know serves a certain purpose from one organism (plant for example) and transplant it into another.
There is nothing new, it is the same thing you could archive with normal breeding but it would take centuries and would only work with closely related species.
You see, 1+1 = 2, 1+1 != flesh eating monster
Of course this is in stark contrast to the practice of 'accelerated breeding by random mutations through irradiation' that nobody ever complained about and where most results are far less then desirable and you really have no clue on what else might have changed.
Also, any current GM Crops inherit their traits and are therefore just as 'permanent' as any created using engineered chromosomes.
Oh, and 'permanent' is of course also incorrect, crossbreeding with non-modified crops will of course weaken (and over time could eliminate) the traits and this is the same for the old and this new approach.
Of course Monstante did develop a way to prevent genetic traits to be inherited, but they ineptly name it 'terminator gene' and the whole world screamed in horror until the released it into the public domain and promised to never ever use it.
And now people complain about GM's being too 'permanent'!
In any case, the chromosomes are simply a neat way to package desired genes and it makes the 'injection' much more reliably.
And no worries, GM Plants created using such chromosomes still won't turn into monsters that eat people, really!
Objections to it are pure technophobia and should be dismissed out of hand.
This is pure BULLSHIT! A lot of technology can be contained in a lab, but GE companies like Monsanto are using the entire planet as their lab. Once a deadly gene enters the environment there's no way to contain it. Like of like viri and worms, once released onto the net it can become exceedingly difficult to contain them.
FalconShould there be a Law?
Once all the natural varieties are driven into extinction, Monsanto can charge whatever it wants. How's a $50.00 dollar loaf of bread or box of corn-flakes sound? Monsanto has already put most non-GM rapeseed ("canola") growers out of business, owning some 80% of the rapeseed market. Think they care how many people starve or are otherwise injured as a result of their greed? If you do, think again. Remember, the new, true corporate philosophy is that their "only responsibility is to the shareholders." If hundreds of millions of human beings starve? So what? It would be good for the corporate bottom-line.
Funny, that once it was found that people could be scared into using rapeseed oil, with lies claiming that other oils, like olive oil, which has been used for thousands of years without problems, suddenly became bad for us (Bullcrap!). Suddenly, rapeseed oil became "canola" oil and Monsanto turns up with their patented, GM product. Coincidence? Wake me up when GM-rapeseed, or if you wish, "canola" oil, GM-corn, etc. have beeen tested for thousands of years. Don't let my reluctance to be a guinea-pig deter you, though: eat all you want. I'll just suffer along with butter, olive oil, and other non-GM foods.
If you want your life to be different, live it differently.
There seems to be discussion of cross pollination and the legal responsibilities of the subjected farmer...
Since it is unreasonable to expect farmers to protect themselves against cross pollination, it far more reasonable that Monsanto Company (or whoever it has been patented under) engineer it to not cross pollinate somehow. Just because your neighbor's unprotected WiFi signal reaches your home, doesn't make you legally responsible for putting up RF-blocking walls or you have to go to jail... If that were the case, watching broadcast television or listening to the radio that offers copyrighted IP could be a possible felony.
I'm all for patents etc.. But if it is impossible to enforce your patent, it shouldn't even allowed. That's not too unlike having a 'private' radio broadcast on a public frequency and suing everyone who tunes in to it. It should be YOUR responsibility to encode the transmissions or operate on some private channel that is not meant for public consumption.
Fact: Everything I say is fiction.
The case is nowhere near as straightforward as most people seem to believe. If you research the details, he bought massive quantities of Round-Up, which was basically the first smoking gun in Monsanto's case[1].
The quantity of Round-Up be bought exceeded the amount that could be applied to his non-crop acreage, ruling out the possibility that it was purchased solely for border weed control etc. This was a very strong indication that he not only knew he was growing RR Canola, but that he was actively selecting for it by spraying his fields.
The other smoking gun was the fact that his crop was 95-98% RR canola[2]. That level of 'contamination' indicates very aggressive, active selection for the target genotype. You do not get that from the trace contamination due to windblown seed or accidental cross-pollination.
I don't doubt that the first few plants were accidental, either through unintentional cross-pollination or stray seed, but once he found that they were round-up resistant, he actively worked to integrate the rr the genotype into his own populations. He probably just didn't feel like he was doing anything wrong.
Small-time seed producers have done exactly the same sort thing with non-GMO germplasm from, e.g., Pioneer Hi-Bred for decades. They'd buy and plant a bag of hybrid seed, and look through the field for accidental selfs (plants produced by accidental self-pollination due to incomplete detasseling during hybrid production) to steal their inbreds from their female heterotic lines. That is just as illegal as what Schmeiser did, but you don't really hear about those guys being busted and completely ruined because Pioneer isn't run by the same type of raging pricks as the guys at Monsanto.
[1] http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/context.jsp?item=gm-54 - "Monsanto argues that in spite of Schmeiser's claims that he did not use Roundup on his crops in 1998, there is no evidence that he used Muster and Assure herbicides as claimed. Furthermore, Monsanto provides evidence that Schmeiser purchased 720 liters of Roundup in 1998."
[2] http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/2004/2004scc34/2004scc34.html - Schmeiser never purchased Roundup Ready Canola nor did he obtain a licence to plant it. Yet, in 1998, tests revealed that 95 to 98 percent of his 1,000 acres of canola crop was made up of Roundup Ready plants. ... The trial judge found that "none of the suggested sources [proposed by Schmeiser] could reasonably explain the concentration or extent of Roundup Ready canola of a commercial quality" ultimately present in Schmeiser's crop."
One seed can germinate to a corn plant. The corn cob has many new seeds on it. Thus, your crop does not 'half' every year. If there's 200 seeds per cob, you can pick the best 3 or 4 cobs for planting, and eat the rest. You'll still have a good crop next year.
Understanding the scope of the problem is the first step on the path to true panic.
I don't doubt that the first few plants were accidental, either through unintentional cross-pollination or stray seed, but once he found that they were round-up resistant, he actively worked to integrate the rr the genotype into his own populations. He probably just didn't feel like he was doing anything wrong.
I wouldn't feel like I was doing anything wrong either. The reason is that if my herbicide of choice was Round-Up anyway (I'm not saying that it was his choice) and my neighbor was using RR Canola, a significant portion of my crop would eventually be RR Canola simply because it would be more likely to survive, even at lower treatment levels. Yes, it may take years or even decades, but that's not really the point. The point is that it's an inevitability if I don't actively purchase new, untainted seed. I find the whole thing to be an act of sabotage. It's a good business model for Monsanto though. Buy their seed or go out of business.
This is either an honest mistake, or a deliberate to mislead. You do not spray non-rr cultivars with roundup, as it will toast down anything that isn't resistant. The only thing you can use it for is controlling weeds outside your tillable ground, or possibly preplant/pre-emerge. Any other usages are inconsistent with the product's label, and actually a punishable offense.
There is no legitimate use of roundup that will incidentally cause significant selection pressure on a crop. Lacking significant positive selection pressure, rare genotypes will only be maintained at a very low frequency in—if not disappear entirely from—a population. The assertion that the levels of the rr genotype would eventually become significant on accident, with absolutely no intervention, is false.
The only reason you would spray roundup on a non-rr crop, aside from just wanting to kill it for some reason, is to deliberately select for the rr genotype.
Make no mistake, that guy knew exactly what he was doing. He spent the better part of his life studying and refining his canola germplasm, obviously had a fairly deep knowledge of plant breeding in general, and basically walked into this with his eyes wide open. He just either didn't think he'd get caught, or didn't think the consequences would be quite so serious.
Cross pollination can't be stopped, cross pollination with GM foods cannot be stopped. GM foods disrupt the environment in ways that we don't really understand. Not to mention the fact that cross pollination estimates are considered grossly underestimated at best.*
*http://www.i-sis.org.uk/GMcontamination.phpI think it's an intriguing technology and it certainly has potential, but these companies have no clue what kind of a mess they're making. All they understand is that when the mess is made they will own it. Oh, here's another question, if I never buy GM seed but my crop reaches 14% GM contamination how do we assess my patent fees? If I'm a certified organic farmer I'm pretty sure I could sue, but otherwise I would be using patented technology.
Under the influence of Post-Cyberpunk Gonzo Journalism