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Review: biosafety assessment of Bt rice and other Bt crops using spiders as example for non-target arthropods in China

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Abstract

Since the birth of transgenic crops expressing Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxin for pest control, the public debate regarding ecological and environmental risks as well as benefits of Bt crops has continued unabated. The impact of Bt crops, especially on non-target invertebrates, has received particular attention. In this review, we summarize and analyze evidences for non-target effects of Bt rice on spiders, major predators in rice fields. Bt rice has been genetically modified to express the Bt protein, which has been shown to be transferred and accumulate in spiders as part of their food chain. Moreover, the Bt protein exhibits unintended effects on the physiology of spiders and spreads to higher trophic levels. Spiders possess unique physiological and ecological characteristics, revealing traits of surrogate species, and are thus considered to be excellent non-target arthropod model systems for study of Bt protein impacts. Due to the complexities of Bt protein transfer and accumulation mechanisms, as well as the apparent lack of information about resulting physiological, biochemical, and ecological effects on spiders, we raise questions and provide recommendations for promising further research.

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Acknowledgements

The study was supported by the Nature Science Foundation of China (Grants Nos. 31472017 and 31272339) and the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program of China (CAAS-ASTIP-IBFC).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agriculture University, No. 1 Nongda Road, Changsha, 410128, Hunan, China

    Huilin Yang, Juan Wang, Jilin Hu & Zhi Wang

  2. College of Orient Science & Technology, Hunan Agriculture University, No. 1 Nongda Road, Changsha, 410128, Hunan, China

    Huilin Yang

  3. Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha, 410205, Hunan, China

    Yuande Peng

  4. College of Continuing Education, Hunan Agriculture University, No. 1 Nongda Road, Changsha, 410128, Hunan, China

    Jianxiang Tian

  5. Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Qisheng Song

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  1. Huilin Yang
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  2. Yuande Peng
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  3. Jianxiang Tian
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  4. Juan Wang
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Correspondence to Zhi Wang.

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Communicated by Neal Stewart.

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Yang, H., Peng, Y., Tian, J. et al. Review: biosafety assessment of Bt rice and other Bt crops using spiders as example for non-target arthropods in China. Plant Cell Rep 36, 505–517 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-017-2108-1

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