A Framework for Assessing the Risk of Transgenic Crops

The environmental risks of many transgenic crops can be evaluated without additional experimentation by using already available information on the biology of the crop, the presence of compatible relatives, and the transgene phenotype. The level of crop invasiveness and the location of compatible rel...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Bioscience 2003-05, Vol.53 (5), p.512-519
Main Author: HANCOCK, JAMES F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biology
Crops
DEPARTMENTS
Developmental Stages
Ecological competition
Engineering
Environmental Research
Environmental risk
Experimentation
Experiments
gene flow
genetic engineering
Genetically altered foods
genetically modified crops (GMOs)
Genetics
introgression
Invasive species
Invasiveness
Natural environments
Pest resistance
Phenotypic traits
Plants
Reproduction
Research and Development
Risk assessment
Transgenes
Transgenic plants
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Summary:The environmental risks of many transgenic crops can be evaluated without additional experimentation by using already available information on the biology of the crop, the presence of compatible relatives, and the transgene phenotype. The level of crop invasiveness and the location of compatible relatives can be determined by consulting local floras and the crop literature. Decisions about invasiveness can be bolstered by determining the number of weediness traits carried by the crop and its congeners. The potential impact of transgenes can be ranked by their likely effect on reproductive success, ranging from neutral to advantageous to detrimental. This scheme can identify not only the low-risk transgene–crop combinations that are safe to deploy but also those that either are too dangerous to release or require additional experimentation.
ISSN:0006-3568
1525-3244
DOI:10.1641/0006-3568(2003)053[0512:AFFATR]2.0.CO;2