Agricultural industrial applications
Field trials and commercial releases
According to information provided by BioTrack, a database administered by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) containing records of field trials and commercial releases in OECD countries (currently 30) from 1996 to 2000, essentially all of genetically-modified organisms (GMO) are plants (98.4%). Most of the research and development of GMOs is carried out in the United States (71.1%). The rest of the OECD countries contribution to GMOs is less than 10% each, with Canada close to 9% and the other countries ranging between 5% and 0.6%. Among plants, maize is the crop with the largest number of genetically-modified varieties (37.4%) followed by oilseed rape (12.4%) and potato (12.1%).[add a comment]
Most introduced traits in the modified crops confer resistance to compounds such as herbicides, pests, such as insects and nematodes, and diseases caused by bacteria, fungi and viruses. Characteristics such as color of flowers, delayed ripening of fruits, and sterility have also been introduced in plants to a lesser extent. Antibiotic resistance is not a trait of interest for most of the modified plants. Nevertheless, nptII is a feature present in many plant releases because it has been used to assist in their selection.[add a comment]
According to the information on globally approved GM plants compiled and provided by Agriculture & Biotechnology Strategies (Canada) Inc., modified plants containing nptII gene that are approved for release into the environment as food or feed products include maize, canola (oilseed rape), melon, potato, tomato and cotton as a fiber crop. Most of the releases have occurred in the United States. However, some transformed cotton varieties developed by Monsanto have been approved in several other countries such as Australia, Argentina, Canada, China, India, Japan, Mexico and South Africa.[add a comment]
Multiple risk assessments of crops, including those for human consumption, containing the nptII gene and its protein have found that there are no scientific reasons to deny or restrict the use of this gene in transgenic crops on grounds of human, animal or environmental safety.[add a comment]
The information contained in this page was believed to be correct at the time it was collated. New patents and patent applications, altered status of patents, and case law may have resulted in changes in the landscape. CAMBIA makes no warranty that it is correct or up to date at this time and accepts no liability for any use that might be made of it. Corrections or updates to the information are welcome. Please send an email to info@bios.net.
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