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Biosafety and risk assessment of transgenic sugarcane plants

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Abstract

This work was aimed to study the risk assessment of the different doses of transgenic sugarcane syrup employing a variety of short term genotoxic bioassays in mice. These assays were employed for the first time in this work to assess the possible genetic lesions induced by genetically modified crops (GMC). The genotoxic bioassays used: were estimation of cell proliferation activity, analysis of chromosomal abnormalities in mice bone-marrow cells, analysis of micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes in mice, analysis of mice primary spermatocytes and analysis of mice spermhead abnormalities. Analysis of amino acids revealed that there were significant differences between the tested sources (transgenic and non transgenic plants). However, aspartic acid, seriene, glutamic acid, proline, glycine, alanine, cystine, valine, methionine and isoleucine showed highly differences.

There were statistically significant differences in mitotic index and cell proliferation in bone marrow of animals treated (fed) with sugarcane transgenic syrup. It ranged from 1.1 to 6.5 % for the doses 5 and 0.5 g/kg b.wt., respectively. Analysis of chromosomal abnormalities in mice bone-marrow cells revealed that there were significant differences. The different types of aberrations observed were: stickiness, fragments, RCF or robertsonian centric fusion, deletion and ring chromosomes. Aberrations were significantly increased with the increasing dose of the tested syrup. Regarding the analysis of micronucleated polychromatic erthrocytes, the data showed that no significant increases in micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes were achieved. The analysis of diakinesis stage revealed that transgenic sugarcane syrup was proven to be a positive inducer of chromosomal aberrations, giving important evidence that its effect reached germinal cells of mice and affected the genome, giving evidence that the present transgenic sugarcane syrup was found to clastogenic at the level of germinal cells. Examination of sperm head abnormalities showed that there were unknown substances in transgenic sugarcane syrup which interacted with sperm head differentiation. Variety of short-term genotoxic bioassays employed in this work have been extensively used for assessment of genetic lesions induced by environmental contaminants.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Breeding and Genetics, Agriculture Research Station, Sabbahia, Sugar Crops Research Institute, Agriculture Research Centre, Alexandria, Egypt

    O. M. Badawy & E. S. Salem

  2. Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt

    M. M. El-Seehy

  3. Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, Damanhour, Alexandria, Egypt

    M. M. Saadalla & M. S. Badran

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  1. O. M. Badawy
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  2. M. M. El-Seehy
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  3. M. M. Saadalla
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  4. M. S. Badran
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  5. E. S. Salem
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Correspondence to O. M. Badawy.

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Badawy, O.M., El-Seehy, M.M., Saadalla, M.M. et al. Biosafety and risk assessment of transgenic sugarcane plants. Sugar Tech 10, 234–242 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12355-008-0042-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12355-008-0042-9

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