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Mothers for Natural LawInternational News on Genetic Engineering in AgricultureBiweekly News 98/11/15ge-news@egroups.com
Articles have been aggressively shortened. The final article puts this newsletter over its word budget, but it so rich in issues that the editor could not resist the temptation to include it. ------------------ National Agricultural Organization Condemns Growth and Consumption of
Genetically Modified Crops and Food
EMBARRASS, Minn., Nov. 13 /PRNewswire/ Farm For Profit Research and Development Inc., the nation's leader in sustainable agriculture, today announced that its Board of Directors has unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the sale, cultivation, growth, harvest and/or consumption of genetically modified crops. Such crops, referred to as GMOs, include: Round-Up Ready Soybeans, Bt Corn and Round-Up Ready Cotton, among others. Farm For Profit President, Howard Vail, announced the Board's action, stating, "The dramatic increase in the development, marketing and sale of genetically modified seed and crops has far more to do with inflating corporate profits than with the sustainability of America's family farmers or the health of its consumers. Consumers worldwide have clearly and unequivocally expressed their adamant opposition to the use of genetically modified crops in the foods they consume unless and until long-term research has been conducted on their effect on the health and immune systems of humans, particularly our children," he continued. "The absence of consumer demand and international government opposition has resulted in massive stockpiles of these unwanted products which has depressed commodity prices for all family farmers -- even those raising real, unadulterated crops," Vail asserted. Copyright 1998, PR Newswire ------------------ Copyright 1998 The Irish Times November 13, 1998, CITY EDITION Consumer victory as EU broadens rules on the labelling of GM foods By KEVIN O'SULLIVAN, Environmental and Food Science Correspondent In a victory for consumers the European Commission is to introduce much wide-ranging regulations on the labelling of genetically modified (GM) foods. The Industry Commissioner, Mr Martin Bangemann, has conceded that consumers have a right "to be informed about the use of additives or flavourings genetically modified or produced by genetic engineering". The Commission had previously sided with producers who insisted such labelling was unnecessary, but now it has undertaken to have new regulations in place within a year. The decision is widely believed to be a response to consumer pressure within member-states. ------------------ Thursday November 5 7:55 AM EDT Islamic Group Approves Some Genetic Engineering DUBAI (Reuters) - A group of Islamic scholars has ruled that Muslims can benefit from genetic engineering to prevent or cure diseases, a Saudi newspaper reported Thursday. But the scholars from the Islamic Jurisprudence Council, based in the Muslim holy city of Mecca in western Saudi Arabia, urged for steps to ensure the process did not become dangerous or violate Islamic laws. ``They called on companies and factories producing medical and food substances by applying genetic engineering to reveal the composition of their material so these can be screened and used in a manner that does not contradict Islamic teachings and become detrimental,'' the daily Arab News said. The Muslim thinkers also acknowledged that tests using the DNA genetic code were an accurate means of identification and a great help to forensic medicine. But they postponed until next year a ruling on the permitted uses of DNA. They also upheld an earlier decision banning human cloning. The council is an affiliate of the Muslim World League, a Saudi-based organization which aims to advance Islamic unity and solidarity while promoting peace and human rights. The scholars' meeting was chaired by Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul-Aziz bin Baz. ------------------ Copyright 1998 Times Mirror Company Los Angeles Times November 3, 1998, Tuesday, Home Edition Severe Arthritis Drug Wins FDA Approval A genetically engineered drug won government approval to help some of the hardest-to-treat sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis. Immunex Corp.'s Enbrel can fight debilitating symptoms in advanced rheumatoid arthritis patients--and appears to cause fewer serious side effects than older therapies. "This product can significantly reduce pain and swollen joints that have restricted their normal daily activities for years," said acting Food and Drug Administration Acting Commissioner Michael Friedman. Immunex said Enbrel, known chemically as etanercept, will be on pharmacy shelves within days. Patients require injections of the drug twice weekly. ------------------ Demegen Obtains Patent for Plant Nutrition Enhancement November 10, 1998 PITTSBURGH, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ via NewsEdge Corporation Demegen, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: DBOT), announces the grant of United States Patent No. 5,811,654 entitled "Plants Genetically Enhanced for Nutritional Quality. "The issued patent broadly covers plants expressing a synthetic plant storage protein. The claims are directed to plants that have been modified to produce protein which is higher than normal in essential amino acid content and thus provide improved plant nutritional quality. The inventor was Dr. Jesse M. Jaynes, Demegen's Vice President of Research, and the exclusive worldwide rights to this technology have been licensed by Demegen, Inc. Potato, sweet potato and tobacco plants embodying this invention have been produced. Overall protein levels in transformed crops have averaged over 16 percent (16%) compared to normal levels of five percent (5%). Levels of individual essential amino acids also have been improved dramatically. Recent animal feeding trials suggest nutrient levels provided in plants containing this new gene provide nutrient contributions equal to those contained in soy and milk. ------------------ Thursday November 5 10:59 AM EDT UK Checks Insurers' Use of Genetic Tests By Bill Rigby LONDON (Reuters) - British life and health insurers must stop using the results of genetic tests to set premium rates until those tests have been validated by an independent body, the government said Thursday. The new body, involving government, insurers and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission, will introduce a validation procedure early next year, Department of Health Minister Tessa Jowell said. The new evaluation mechanism will assess whether there is scientific and actuarial evidence that the result of a genetic test provides a sound basis for insurers' decisions on insurability, the government said. Ministers hope the regulations will allay fears that insurers could demand higher premiums from someone who is found to be likely to develop an inherited disease such as breast cancer. Insurers use genetic tests for seven specific conditions. ------------------ Effort to Make Part-Human, Part-Cow Cells Troubles Clinton By NICHOLAS WADE Saying that he is "deeply troubled" by the creation of part-human, part-cow embryonic stem cells, President Clinton has directed the National Bioethics Advisory Commission to consider the implications of the research at its meeting Tuesday in Miami and to report back to him "as soon as possible". ... Human embryonic stem cells can develop into any of the body's 210 types of cells, a process that happens naturally during fetal development. Biologists at Geron, the company that supported the research, hope to grow the cells in the laboratory and guide them to develop into heart cells, blood cells and other tissues. ... The human-cow hybrid cell also complied with all laws, said Michael West, chief executive of Advanced Cell Technology of Worcester, Mass., the company that supported the research. In the hybrid cell, the cow cell's nucleus is first removed and the cow proteins are expected to be rapidly replaced with human proteins as the human nucleus takes over the cell. Although the mingling of species raises many questions, scientists at Advanced Cell Technology regard the operation as one in which the cow egg is used simply to make the human cell's nucleus revert to its embryonic state. ------------------ Sunday November 8 12:21 PM ET Japan Pushes Cloning to Marketplace By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press Writer TSUKUBA, Japan (AP) - It is just after feeding time, and two calves are contentedly drinking water from a trough in their nondescript pen, a few stray pieces of hay stuck to their wet, brown noses. The two 4-month-olds - ES1 and ES2 - are the prototypes of a brave new world of cloning that Japanese researchers, farmers and entrepreneurs are rapidly taking out of the laboratory and putting onto the dinner table. Cloned potatoes, tomatoes and asparagus are already commonplace in Japanese grocery stores. Cloned orchids are sold by florists, and cloned goldfish are available at pet shops. Cloned flounder and salmon are in the works. But with the domestic cattle industry being squeezed by cheaper imported beef, Japanese scientists and agricultural officials see the real goal of cloning to be the widespread genetic copying of mammals. "Our primary interest is to revive Japan's cattle industry,'' said Makoto Tabata, who is in charge of cloning research for the Ministry of Agriculture. ------------------ New Scientist October 31, 1998 Brave new rose By David Concar ...there's nothing about the biology of plant pigments that means grass has to be green or that wood has to be a yellowy brown. Polka dot button holes to match your tie or scarf are some way off, but already a couple of transgenic carnations that are mauve rather than the usual pink, yellow, white or red are being sold by florists in Australia, Japan and the US. ..."Some people find sweet roses overwhelming, and most cut roses have almost no odour at all," says Michael Dobres. Two years ago, in Philadelphia, Dobres helped found a company called NovaFlora that aims to remedy this sorry state of affairs. One of their projects involves inserting a gene into roses that would enable their petals to produce lemon fragrance molecules. The gene encodes an enzyme called limonene synthase, which citrus plants use to synthesise scent molecules known as monoterpenes. The researchers have already given the gene to petunias and are waiting for their first crop of what they hope will be a lemon scented transgenic flower. ------------------ The following fictitious tale is an imaginative presentation of the possibilities - Editor Date: 12 Nov 1998 06:31:29 -0600
...It was in the fall of 1984 that John Chapman Professor of Biochemistry at Florida State University, now driving to work behind the wheel of a used Pontiac Bonneville, first set on a pet project that he hoped would "dissolve irrational [drug enforcement] legislation with a solid dose of reason." Nanofsky knew he would never get his family's car back, but he had plans to make sure that no one else would be pulled through the gears of what he considers a Kafka-esque drug enforcement bureaucracy. "It's quite simple, really," Nanofsky explains, "I wanted to combine Citrus synthesis with Delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol." In layman's terms, the respected college professor proposed to grow oranges that would contain THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. Fourteen years later, that project is complete, and Nanofsky has succeeded where his letter writing campaign of yore failed: he has the undivided attention of the nation's top drug enforcement agencies, political figures, and media outlets. The turning point in the Nanofsky saga came when the straight-laced professor posted a message to Internet newsgroups announcing that he was offering "cannabis-equivalent orange tree seeds" at no cost via the U.S. mail. Several weeks later, U.S. Justice Department officials showed up at the mailing address used in the Internet announcement: a tiny office on the second floor of the Dittmer Laboratory of Chemistry building on the FSU campus. There they would wait for another 40 minutes before Prof. Nanofsky finished delivering a lecture to graduate students on his recent research into the "cis-trans photoisomerization of olefins." "I knew it was only a matter of time before someone sent me more than just a self-addressed stamped envelope," Nanofsky quips, "but I was surprised to see Janet Reno's special assistant at my door". After a series of closed door discussions, Nanofsky agreed to cease distribution of the THC-orange seeds until the legal status of the possibly narcotic plant species is established. Much to the chagrin of authorities, the effort to regulate Nanofsky's invention may be too little too late. Several hundred packets containing 40 to 50 seeds each have already been sent to those who've requested them, and Nanofsky is not obliged to produce his mailing records. Under current law, no crime has been committed and it is unlikely that charges will be brought against the fruit's inventor. Now it is federal authorities who must confront the nation's unwieldy body of inconsistent drug laws. According to a source at the Drug Enforcement Agency, it may be months if not years before all the issues involved are sorted out, leaving a gaping hole in U.S. drug policy in the meantime. At the heart of the confusion is the fact that THC now naturally occurs in a new species of citrus fruit. As policy analysts and hemp advocates alike have been quick to point out, the apparent legality (for now) of Nanofsky's "pot orange" may render debates over the legalization of marijuana moot. In fact, Florida's top law enforcement officials admit that even if the cultivation of Nanofsky's orange were to be outlawed, it would be exceedingly difficult to identify the presence of outlawed fruit among the state's largest agricultural crop. ------------------ In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is compiled for educational use only. |
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