How can the genetically modified safety test be "frustrated"?

Science Times trainee reporter Ni Sijie


Recently, the controversy over the safety of genetically modified foods has been renewed.

On October 26th, it was reported that the Ministry of Agriculture's special genetically modified management office confirmed that in 2012, the Chinese Academy of Food and Drug Authentication and China Agricultural University were commissioned to use genetically modified rice as the research object and selected monkeys, miniature pigs and other animals for systematic metabolism. Immunity, reproduction and development evaluation studies.

Although the Ministry of Agriculture's Office of Genetically Modified GM stated that the trial was intended only to provide more scientific data and information at the scientific level, and not because of the requirements for the safety assessment of genetically modified organisms, the report still aroused the public’s opinion about whether genetically modified food is Safety concerns.

So what kind of tests can prove the safety of genetically modified foods and what should be done in the safety testing of GM foods?

The results have not been eliminated

The 90-day short-term feeding trial of mini-pigs was part of a related project commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture of China Agricultural University. On October 21, the head of the miniature pig feeding experiment and the professor Huang Kunlun of the China Agricultural University's School of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering said in an interview with a reporter from the China Science Journal that the experimental pig had no poisoning or death during feeding. The pig's fur is smooth, flexible, normal diet, and good growth and development. Moreover, the test group and the control group are basically the same in body weight, body length, chest circumference and other indicators.

Although the media subsequently published the results of the trial, public concerns have not been eliminated.

“We need to understand the safety implications of long-term consumption. Can 90-day trials convince the public of the "rigor" of the review?" Talking about this, Zhao Wenjin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, raised this question.

In addition, data disclosure has also become the focus. Xiao Xianjing, a professor at the University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, believes: "As long as no state secrets are involved, such data and other information of the trials should be fully disclosed. Peer review and reproducibility tests should be conducted to determine the objectivity of the test results. Let the public know more about the trial."

In this regard, Huang Kunlun said: "We only have the right to provide test data to the commissioning party. As for whether customers are willing to release data, we have no right to interfere." And the Ministry of Agriculture agricultural GMO safety management office revealed to reporters, in addition to 90 days of mini-pigs In addition to the short-term feeding trials, this project also includes other tests, and all test data and results will not be published until the project is completed, and the project will be completed in 2015.

Human trials are difficult

Huang Kunlun said that the 90-day mini-pig feeding trial is not necessary for the safety assessment of genetically modified organisms.

“According to the regulations, it is enough to use rats to carry out safety evaluation tests.” Huang Kunlun introduced that the current domestic GM crops for food safety research include rice, corn, wheat, soybeans, rapeseed, etc., while animal experiments mainly have mouse acute Toxicity test, three-induced test, rat 90-day feeding test, rat long-term toxicity test, rat multi-generation breeding test, allergic animal test, etc.

The experiment chose small pigs, "because the physiology and anatomy of pigs are very similar to humans and can reflect the safety of transgenic rice for human consumption to a greater extent." Huang Kunlun said.

However, Zhao Bin, a professor at the School of Life Sciences at Fudan University, believes that there are still great differences from pigs to humans. It is clear that there is still a long way to go to identify their safety.

It is precisely because of this that all along, the proposal of “human trials of genetically modified organisms” has been continuously mentioned.

In this regard, Huang Kunlun believes that due to ethical issues, it is unrealistic to conduct human trials on all genetically modified products. In the research and development process of various new resources, as long as other scientific tests are sufficient to prove its safety, there is no need for human trials.

“Drug can do human tests because it is not part of the human diet, and its components are relatively monotonous. It can strictly limit the intake time and intake, and track the metabolism of its components in the human body. Proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, and other complex substances make it difficult to comprehensively track the metabolism of a food ingredient in the body, explains Huang Kunlun.

The cumulative effect of generations is very important

According to the “Guidelines for Safety Evaluation of Genetically Modified Plants” of the Ministry of Agriculture, the food safety evaluation of genetically modified crops must include the evaluation of newly-expressed substances in toxicology, allergenicity assessment, analysis of key components such as nutrients and natural toxins, whole food safety evaluation, and nutritional evaluation. The evaluation of safety impacts of production and processing, and other safety evaluations that need to be conducted on a case-by-case basis.

"At present, no matter whether the experiment is conducted with rats or pigs, if we want to use this to explain that genetically modified crops are healthy and safe for people, they are all flawed because we cannot see the possible cumulative effect of generations." Zhao Bin believes that the correct approach Yes, it is convincing that the offspring of the pigs fed with the genetically modified feed continue to feed the genetically modified feed for three generations.

As for what to do with genetically modified safety trials, the reporter also interviewed specialists in the field of botany and biology at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. They believe that we can't demand that all tests be completed at once, but we should gradually carry out more scientific, systematic, and long-term experiments. For example, pigs can be tested with more individuals, such as pigs in different physiological conditions, fed for one or two years or several generations.

Zhang Jingqing, director of the Greenpeace Food and Agriculture Project, suggested that the government should invest in research and development with proportionate funds and efforts to carry out genetic safety testing and research.


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