GMO corn: France rejects report by EU food agency
(AFP)
Unusual Little Blurbs
AFP - France on Friday rejected a report by the European Union's food safety watchdog that said a controversial strain of genetically-modified corn was safe. Source: Source
Image from MorgueFile public domain.
GMO Corn - Corn Research (Hover)
Is Insecticidal GMO Corn Safe?
Are GMOs Safe? The Case of BT CornRecently the prominent science journal Nature editorialized that we are now swimming in information about genetically modified crops, but that much of the information is wrong—on both sides of the debate. “But a lot of this incorrect information is sophisticated, backed by legitimate-sounding research and written with certitude,” adding that with GMOs, “a good gauge […] Ref. Source 3n.
Breeding highly productive corn has reduced its ability to adapt. Researchers wanted to know whether the last 100 years of selecting for corn that is acclimated to particular locations has changed its ability to adapt to new or stressful environments. By measuring populations of corn plants planted across North America, they could test how the corn genomes responded to different growing conditions. Source 8a.
Plant scientists study the interaction of heat stress responses in corn. A new study shows how two responses in separate locations inside plant cells work in concert to help corn plants respond to heat stress. The research was made possible by the Enviratron, an innovative plant sciences facility at Iowa State University that utilizes a robotic rover and highly controlled growth chambers. Source 1x.
Tweaking corn kernels with CRISPR. Corn has a highly complex genome, making it a challenge to apply genome-editing techniques to it. Researchers used CRISPR to tinker with the corn genome promoter regions and modify stem cell growth. They figured out which sections influence kernel yield, and they hope to make targeted genome-editing in corn more precise and efficient. Source 5b.
I'm always happy for scientific breakthroughs but I'm also kind of guarded about forcing nature to provide something it doesn't normally do. What effect does that have on the environment and those who eat?