This paper discusses the status of

genetically enhancing food-plant

varieties to withstand diseases, droughts,

and other factors that would otherwise

limit their production.

The Status of

Genetically

Modified

Organisms and

their Role in

Alleviating Hunger

Zaara Dean, Haniya Ahmad, Jameson Dyer, Richard Lee, Amelia Page

1

Abstract

This paper discusses the current status of genetically enhancing food-plant varieties to

withstand diseases, droughts, and other factors that would otherwise limit their production. Many

countries around the world are starting to become involved in the production, testing, and use of

transgenic crops because of these factors. There are many controversies when it comes to human

consumption of these products, but there is no hard evidence that GMOs are to blame for various

health issues; however, there have been negative environmental effects that are suspected to be

caused by transgenic crops. Given this information, the research group came to the conclusion

that transgenic crops should be used to promote global food security and alleviate hunger.

Introduction

GMO stands for “genetically modified organism”, which in a broad sense can be defined

as any microbe, plant, or animal developed through breeding and selection. Using this definition,

humans have been eating GMOs for thousands of years. Long before the Theory of Evolution

and genetics, farmers have been selectively growing and breeding crops. Farmers would grow

and breed the plants that gave the most yield reliably. For example, corn has been selectively

bred and grown to contain certain traits, such as bigger cobs, taller, and stronger plants. This

phenomenon is known as artificial selection (“Artificial Selection”, n.d.).

Artificial selection is a form of genetic modification that has caused various organisms to

evolve due to selective breeding from humans. There are many organisms that have evolved

artificially due to human involvement. Some of these organisms include crops and domesticated

animals, especially the different breeds of dogs. Every breed of dog has been bred in order to

have certain traits and genes. However, when an organism is developed with gene transfer

technologies in which the gene from another organism is transferred into the original organism,

the organism is considered transgenic and thus is a unique subset within the overarching term of

GMOs.

Controversy exists over the use and growth of transgenic crops because of many factors

including human health, environmental, political, and economic concerns. Transgenic crops,

however, also have positive effects. Some crops can be made to grow in different climates and

contain higher nutritional value. People fighting for the use of GMOs believe that these benefits

can help the current and future problem of world hunger. The human population has grown and

will continue to grow very quickly. It is estimated that the world population will grow to be

approximately 9-10 billion, and that it may be difficult to feed this large population (Bongaarts,

1994). This growth in population has been largely attributed to advances in agriculture

throughout the twentieth century.

For example, in the 1930’s hybrid corn crop varieties were developed. When two inbred

lines (both with desirable traits) are bred together, the product of this breeding is called a hybrid

crop. These hybrid crops produced higher yields than the conventionally bred varieties. In the

1950’s these hybrid lines were then bred with each other to produce even higher yielding crops.

This adoption of hybrid varieties accounts for 50 percent of the total increase in yield; the other

50 percent is because of other advances in agricultural technology. Because of these factors, the

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yield production increase from year to year (1930 to 1990) was on average of 3 tonnes/hectare

more every year. By the 1990’s this gain in production had shrunk to 1.8 tonnes/hectare per year

because newer higher producing hybrids were becoming harder to create (Edgerton, 2009).

Biotechnology has shown that it can help create an even larger yield as better strands of plants

are developed.

This paper explains the status of current GMO technology, the potential risks in using

GMOs, and addresses the potential use of transgenic crops in helping to alleviate hunger.

Methods

The research group received the Global Seminar question and planned to solve the

problem by discussing what each member had prior knowledge about, then dividing and

researching information to ensure accuracy and credibility. After several days of research using

the Virginia Tech University’s online resources, the group reached a conclusion. The group also

used other databases including Academic Search Complete and Google Scholar to ensure the

accuracy of the found information. The group created search strings to help find literature in

these databases related to the topic by using the Virginia Tech Search Strategy Builder. To

access and find information using these databases, the following keywords were used:

Environmental Effects, Global Food Security, Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO), Transgenic Crops, Health Risks, World Hunger, Food Access, Monsanto, Water Efficient Maize

for Africa (WEMA), and Antibiotic resistance.

Results

In the following sections, the risks and benefits of transgenic crops are discussed. The

group addresses various transgenic traits such as: resistance to disease, pests, and droughts. The

group also examines the environmental and human health concerns of using transgenic crops.

Using this information, the group is able to create a stance on the controversy surrounding the

use of transgenic crops.

Disease Resistance

Crop diseases, such as the wheat and soybean mosaic viral diseases, are major inhibitors

in the yield of many crops around the world. As a result, there has been much research in

engineering crops resistant to these diseases and other diseases affecting crop yields. In the May

2014 issue of Plant Biotechnology Journal, a team of researchers reported that they had created a

wheat plant that could develop a resistance to the wheat yellow mosaic virus (WYMV), a

particularly severe virus that accounts for major wheat yield losses in China. During field testing

of the genetically modified lines of wheat crops from 2000 to 2010, the researchers were able to

find a yield increase of over 10% as compared to their non-transgenic counterparts (Chen et al.,

2014).

In another study involving genetically modified plants, the soybean mosaic virus (SMV),

a disease problematic to soybean fields worldwide, was combated by overexpressing GmAKT2.

The researchers used the fact that potassium plays an important part in the function of multiple

enzymes and hormonal pathways integral in the effect diseases have on a plant. Therefore, with

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this connection, the researchers tweaked the GmAKT2 gene, which is responsible for

transporting potassium in soybean plants, by modifying the already SMV resistant Rsmv1

genotype as opposed to the more susceptible Ssmv1 genotype within soybean plants. By

selectively modifying the genotype already carrying traits favorable to reducing the instances of

SMV through the overexpression of GmAKT2 gene in this favorable genotype, researchers were

able to significantly increase the capacity at which these plants could take in potassium. The

researchers were therefore able to use potassium fertilizer to enrich potassium levels in their test

plants and create an artificial increase in potassium content in the transgenic soybean plants. The

plants, with enhanced levels of potassium, were then able to successfully resist SMV(Zhou et al.,

2014).

Disease resistant crops could limit the effect of disease on yields worldwide for a variety

of crops. In the case of the wheat yellow mosaic vrus, affected wheat farmers could see

improvements in grain yield by 20% to even 70% (Chen et al., 2014). Farmers affected by

soybean mosaic virus could see similar improvements, with the elimination of 8-50% crop losses

by the implementation of soybean crops with increased SMV resistance being a very real

possibility (Zhou et al., 2014). Therefore, as the estimates have shown with just two crops, the

possible improvement in crop yields could be momentous for farming operations worldwide.

Increases in crop yields, not even factoring in other changes to current farming practices, could

be a reality from just the implementation of disease resistant crops.

Insect Resistance

Crops genetically modified to resist insects by producing toxins from Bacillus

thuringiensis (Bt) have been increasingly used throughout the world. Bt is a spore forming

bacterium that produces crystal proteins that are toxic to insects. “Bt is largely used in

agriculture, especially organic farming; it is also used in urban aerial spraying programs, and in

transgenic crops” (Chien, n.d.). Since 1996, plants have been modified with short sequences of

genes from Bt to express the crystal protein Bt makes. With this method, plants themselves are

able to produce the proteins and protect themselves from insects without any external Bt and/or

synthetic pesticide sprays.

Nonetheless, there is still debate about whether or not to spray insecticide or to grow

transgenic plants, although both are used extensively in modern agricultural operations

throughout the world. From 1996 to 2002, the amount of land used for transgenic crops was

estimated at around 62 million hectares(Tabashnik et al., 2003). With such a large amount of

land used for transgenic crops, several studies have been conducted about this topic and have

supported transgenic plants by showing that Bt crops are more effective than spraying the Bt

toxin itself on the crops (Roush, 1994).

An experiment on using Bt cotton in India also supported the use of using Bt genetically

modified into plants when it found that pest damage could be greatly reduced and crop yields

greatly increased with the use of Bt cotton. The poor farmers used in the experiment had always

had a relatively low crop yield because of the rampant insect problems not addressed by any

chemical or biotechnological solutions common in more agriculturally developed countries but

with the use of Bt cotton, crop yields normally stifled by insects were able to be increased

drastically(Qaim, 2003).

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Drought Resistance

Crops must have a sufficient water supply in order to grow and be harvested. Therefore,

drought tolerance is commonly targeted by researchers aiming to increase the food security of

nations growing crops for themselves and the rest of the world. Regardless of the possibility of

drought within their growing seasons, any region can find benefits in the surprising hardiness

that drought resistance brings.

One such study was done by the Texas Tech University in Lubbock Texas that aimed to

develop a cotton plant with drought resistant characteristics. The researchers were able to

develop cotton plants with increased resistances to drought stress in both field and greenhouse

conditions because of improved photosynthesis from greater biomass in the critical leaf, stem,

and root parts of the plants. By overexpressing the AtRAV1/2 and/or the AtABI5 gene through

genetic modification, the researchers were able to create plants with leaf sizes that were almost

86% greater than the leaf sizes of their unmodified counterparts, therefore creating a plant able to

more efficiently grow in conditions with an overabundance of sunlight. Furthermore, the

modified genes were found to result in beneficial increases in the stem and root systems of the

modified plants, with the RAV1 lines showing an increase of 9.7% to 33% in stem weight and all

of the developed transgenic lines growing 21% to 96% more root mass. As a result, when the

transgenic cotton was subjected to the worst drought and heat conditions on record, which

occurred in 2011, they were able to have crop yields on par with the control plants not exposed

to these extreme conditions (Mittal et al., 2014).

Environmental Risks of using GMOs

One possible problem with the production of transgenic crops is that GMOs may

interbreed with native varieties or sexually compatible relatives, which would result in a hybrid

crop. In a study done by the Netherlands Institute of Technology, genetically modified beets and

wild beets were analyzed to see whether or not outcrossing would occur; transport of vital pollen

by wind was observed. Outcrossing species have increased genetic diversity and have reduced

the probability of an individual being subject to disease or reducing genetic abnormalities

(Cureton, 2006). These hybrid crops, created from the breeding of transgenic crops and native

species, could possibly contain traits that give them a better chance in surviving in certain

ecosystems. Since these crops have a greater chance of survival, the native species may be

replaced by this new hybrid transgenic crop due to an increased level of fitness in the hybrid.

Another factor that scientists are concerned about is hybridization of crops with nearby

weeds; this may allow weeds to acquire undesired traits, such as resistance to herbicides. As

weeds adapt to herbicides, they develop resistance and evolve into weeds that are superior to the

wild type. When this happens, herbicide use increases and the benefits of herbicide resistant

transgenic crops are lost (“The Rise of Superweeds-and what to do about it”, 2013).

Weeds that are resistant to herbicides can also arise just from the extensive use of

herbicides. Herbicides have been a key part of the production of crops for the last half century.

One of the most common herbicides is glyphosate, known as RoundUp when produced by

Monsanto. It kills all plants that are growing by inhibiting the EPSPS enzyme of cells from the

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growth bud on the top of the plant, which makes the plant stop growing and makes the plant die

within two weeks. Monsanto was able to develop a couple of different transgenic crops to resist

glyphosate because Monsanto researchers found a mutated EPSPS enzyme in a bacterium, which

they implemented into these crops. These crop varieties have been in widespread use: in 2009,

93% of soybeans, and significant percentages of corn and cotton grown in the US were from

Roundup Ready seeds. However, the widespread use of herbicides has created weeds that are

resistant to glyphosate. This resistance is gained because of evolution; the strong plants, that

were able to survive the resistance, reproduced and passed the resistant trait (Alder, 2011). In

order for herbicide resistant transgenic crops to be used, herbicides need to be changed

frequently in order to prevent the creation of these “superweeds.” By changing herbicides

frequently, it does not allow the weeds enough time or generations to evolve to become resistant

to any of the different herbicides.

Health Concerns

Genetically modified crops can be dangerous to allergy sufferers. This sort of novel

allergenicity can happen if an allergen causing gene from certain allergenic crops is extracted

and transformed into another crop species that is not normally allergenic. An example of this is

shown in the introduction of the protein Cry9C into genetically engineered corn to produce a Bt

endotoxin; Cry9C may elicit potentially harmful immunological responses, including allergic

hypersensitivity (Dona & Arvanitoyannis, 2008). In 2002, Kraft Foods recalled a product

because it contained remnants of unapproved Cry9C. The Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA) regulated Cry endotoxin in Bt corn as plant pesticides. The agency can grant exemption

from a food tolerance requirement if it doesn’t cause any harm. In the case of Cry9C, the EPA

granted a limited exemption that restricted utilization to animal feed and non-food uses. (Jones,

2001).

Another health concern associated with GM crops is antibiotic-resistance. When

scientists transfer certain genes into a different plant’s DNA, they have to check if the cells

successfully took up the genes. To ensure that the transfer was successful, the inserted genes are

coupled with a marker gene. “Plant cells expressing an antibiotic resistance marker gene (ABR

gene) are thus not harmed by that antibiotic. Treating the cells after the gene transfer with an

antibiotic allows only the successfully transformed cells to survive. These cells also possess the

gene of interest” (GMO Compass, “Why Antibiotic Resistance Genes”, ¶ 2). This is a concern

because some genetically modified crops were found to contain leftover antibiotic resistance

genes as residue from the bioengineering process; although the antibiotic resistance genes are

inactive, health specialists worry that, if present in sufficiently large numbers, they could

accumulate in the bodies of consumers (Feldmann, Morris, & Hoisington, 2000).

Pregnant women are also at a higher risk because Bt toxins can flow through blood

supply and can pass through to the placenta into fetuses. In a government sponsored research in

Italy, mice fed Monsanto’s Bt corn showed a wide range of immune responses. The mice showed

higher levels of IgE and IgG antibodies, which is associated with allergies and infections. The

young mice also showed an increase in the number of T cells (gamma delta), which are increased

in people with asthma, and in children with food allergies, juvenile arthritis, and connective

tissue disease (Smith, 2011).

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Although there are many health risks associated with the consumption of GM crops, the

health benefits greatly outweigh the risks. This consensus was very easy to make after the group

observed some of the results of transgenic crops. Golden Rice is a transgenic crop that is

genetically engineered to have high levels of vitamin A. The human body uses vitamin A to

support cell growth and differentiation. It is also a critical role in the normal formation and

maintenance of the heart, lungs, kidneys, and other organs.

Golden Rice is a variety of rice engineered to produce Beta Carotene (pro-vitamin A) to

help combat vitamin A deficiency. Golden rice was created by increasing the amount of

cartenoids, which are a group of plant pigments important in the human diet as the only

precursors of vitamin A. Vitamin A deficiency is a major problem in parts of the developing

world and can result in permanent blindness and infectious diseases. In Asia, vitamin A

deficiency is associated with the poverty related predominant consumption of rice, which lacks

pro vitamin A. Providing pro-vitamin A in a staple food such as rice could be a simple and

effective complement to help alleviate vitamin A deficiency in countries similar to Asia (Payne,

2005).

Labeling Controversy

One factor that could potentially limit the production of transgenic crops is the ongoing

debate over whether or not it is important to label transgenic products. In the United States this

controversy is hotly debated. The FDA currently requires the product to be labeled “If the

[transgenic] food has a significantly different nutritional property; if a new food includes an

allergen that consumers would not expect to be present; or if a food contains a toxicant beyond

acceptable limits” (Bryne, 2002). But in general, companies do not have to specify if their

products contain transgenic components because the FDA has ruled that most transgenic crops

are not substantially different from organic or conventional foods. Consumers want to know what they are eating, and they do have a right to know what is

in their food. Because transgenic crops are relatively new, many people are still afraid of them.

They are afraid that the testing used to determine the safety of the genetic alteration is not good

enough and that a new allergen or toxic compound might show up in the transgenic crop. Many

customers have been misinformed as to what a transgenic crop is and how it affects human

health and the environment. While there is no quantifiable effect on human health, there is a

difference in how the farm operated and how the crop affected the environment when compared

to conventional crops. Customers have the right to choose if they want to support industries that

practice these methods, but the industries also have the right to protect themselves. Industries are afraid that adding a label would cause customers to avoid buying their

products. If customers know which crops are transgenic or which products have transgenic

ingredients, sales of these crops or products in many areas of the country might drop. The drop in

demand would impact the industries that grow, produce, and sell these products. The industries

would then have to raise their prices, further limiting their economic advantage. “Reliable public

and private cost estimates for mandatory [transgenic] labeling are not currently available” but

roughly 70% of food products in the United States have a genetically engineered ingredient.

(Marsh, Nester, Beary, Pendell, Poovaiah, & Unlu, 2013) If prices rise then those who are in

poor regions or do not have easy access to healthy food will be impacted significantly.

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Regardless of the impact on just the industries, mandatory labeling would be more

expensive for the consumer and the producer. Regulations would have to be created to define

what has to be labeled as transgenic and why. Producers would then have to track products that

meet the standard and change the labeling in order to comply with the regulations (Bryne, 2002).

Initiative 522 was a proposition that “would require labeling [of] all foods that include

ingredients from genetically modified plants or animals”. It was proposed in Washington State to

be voted on November of 2013, but it failed in the poles with 45.2% in favor and 54.8% against.

“It was estimated that the Washington State government could spend up to $22.5 million

annually to enforce I-522.”(Marsh et al., 2013) There are obstacles to labeling transgenic crops, such as classifying what is transgenic.

Definitions could range from animals fed transgenic feed to cereal made with transgenic corn

syrup. Some products have such small amounts of transgenic material in them that it could

almost be considered negligible to some consumers but to others it is still enough to want a label.

Another problem would be enforcing the regulations. Imports, farmers markets, and grocery

stores would all have to be policed. Companies would have to track where the seed was created,

grown, and harvested. They would also have to track transportation and storage of transgenic

products to insure that they were not getting mixed in with non-transgenic products. As of now,

these regulations are being proposed on a state level and each state has its own variation. All of

these problems have to be addressed before a decision can be made.

Discussion

The group came to the conclusion that transgenic crops should be used for human

consumption in order to promote global food-security and alleviate hunger. This consensus was

made after the members observed some of the positive results of transgenic crops. The group

decided that the benefits of using these crops greatly outweigh the risks and that transgenic crops

could be used in many corners of the world to improve the quality of life. The research group did acknowledge that transgenic crops are far from perfect. It is a

very long and labor-intensive process to create new transgenic crops. The United States has been

producing, using, and eating transgenic crops since 1994, and so far no outstanding health issues

have been documented, but there have been plenty of environmental impacts. However, with

time, patience, and research, transgenic crop technology will grow exponentially and hopefully

make the world a better place by helping to feed the growing human population.

Many political leaders, such as Owen Paterson, the United Kingdom’s environment

minister, have been striving to implement GM crops in third world countries that are suffering

greatly from world hunger. They believe that GMOs can strongly impact these countries’

agricultural communities, jump start their economies, and protect their populations by facilitating

the crop yields and quality of food. Some might say that GMOs are not needed in these countries

because they are designed to address the problems that countries in Africa are not facing, such as

pest resistance and herbicide resistance (Belay & Nyanbra, 2013).

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Countries in Africa are facing problems that are centered on droughts and malnutrition.

Although GMO producers such as Monsanto are working on Water Efficient Maize for Africa

(WEMA) seeds that withstand drought, they have yet to hit the market; thus, making no valid

reason to employ GM Crops in third world countries (Belay & Nyanbra, 2013).

GM Crops produce bigger earnings for farmers to create more effective use of land with

minimal use of herbicides and pesticides. Finally, GM foods can create a vital ecological way to

end world hunger (“Benefits of GM Food,” 2005). GM Crops have reduced the need for

pesticide by a total of 22.3 million kilograms. Essentially, GM Crops can make marked

reductions in global pesticide use (Phipps & Park, 2002).

Transgenic crops are currently not being widely used throughout the world to help alleviate

world hunger. Although studies have shown the possibility of creating transgenic crops with

higher nutritional value, higher yields, higher stress tolerance, and easier production. There are

still critics that completely discredit even the remote possibility of using transgenic crops in

agricultural operations worldwide. However, the truth of the matter is that society is running out

of time. Sooner or later, something must be done to feed the growing population and as a

promising solution society should at least attempt to see if transgenic crops could be the answer.

Nonetheless, eventually society will come to a point where a choice must be made and if society

is pressured to make a choice at the last moment, future generations could be left with the residue

of a quick, unorganized decision and a world very different from what it could have turned into

had a choice been made sooner.

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