September 2013
ISB News Report - September 2013
http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/2013/Sep13.pdf
Table of Contents
AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS NEWS
Genetically Engineered Cotton and Food Security in India
Matin Qaim and Shahzad Kouser
There are three possible pathways showing how GE crops could affect food security. First, GE crops could contribute to food production increases and thus improve the availability of food at global and local levels. Second, GE crops could affect food safety and food quality. Third, GE crops could influence the economic and social situation of farmers, thus improving or worsening their economic access to food. This latter aspect is of particular importance, because a large proportion of all undernourished people worldwide are smallholder farmers.
RISK ASSESSMENT NEWS
The Bt-trait in Cotton Affects Plant-mediated Competition Among Herbivores
Steffen Hagenbucher & Jörg Romeis
In recent years, increased populations of sap-feeding herbivores have been reported in Bt cotton in different parts of the world. The rise of pests that are not targeted by the Bt trait is commonly explained by the reduction in the application of broad-spectrum insecticides to control pest Lepidoptera. Other factors that could contribute to the emergence of pests in Bt cotton include the release from competition with lepidopteran pests. This competition could be direct, through resource depletion due to lepidopteran feeding, or caused indirectly by induction of secondary plant compounds due to prior herbivory. While cases of direct competition between Bt-target and non-target herbivores have been reported, indirect competition was not considered as a mechanism before.
PLANT NEWS
Overexpression of a Native Plasma Membrane Aquaporin for Development of Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Banana
Upendra K S Shekhawat and Thumballi R Ganapathi
Although banana plant is acutely sensitive to any level of drought and salt stress, research into the stress responses of banana has progressed at a very slow pace. Recently, a limited number of papers on banana stress responses and signaling have been published. Banana, with its conspicuously shallow roots and permanently green leaf cover, requires a copious supply of water year round, and hence banana plantations are especially sensitive to any form of water deficit. Because aquaporins are involved in water homeostasis in land plants, detailed studies are essential to investigate the role of aquaporins in water deficit stress conditions in banana.
NEWS AND NOTES
Update on the Detection of Genetically Engineered (GE) Glyphosate-Resistant Wheat Plants
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service sent this bulletin at 07/29/2013 03:20 PM EDT
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has been conducting a thorough investigation into the detection of genetically engineered (GE) glyphosate-resistant wheat plants in one field of one farm in Oregon. Extensive testing following the detection of these plants confirmed the wheat as a variety – MON71800 – developed by Monsanto. The ongoing investigation is working to uncover how MON71800 GE wheat came to be in the field and to determine the extent of its presence.
Scientific Articles Confirm Safety of Food and Feeds Derived from Genetically Modified Crops
ChileBio published a listing of scientific papers which have evaluated the safety of foods derived from GM crops. Analysis of the published articles along with tests required by countries regulating GM crops represent evidence that the global scientific community can use to support that foods derived from GM crops are safe to human and animal consumption.
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