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honey honey
October 10, 2002
Prof. Joe Cummins
e-mail: jcummins@uwo.ca
“Honey Bees and the toxicity of genetically modified crops”
Genetically modified (GM) crops incoeporate novel changes in the
genetics of crops. Bees have an essential but subtle relationship to the
crops and to the environment. It is essential that GM crops should not
damage the bees and if commercial GM crops are found to injure bees that
those crops be removed from production. Gm crops can effect bees directl
or indirectly through effecting flowering and pollen production. A good
deal of effort has been directed to evaluating the impact of GM crops ,
particularly those crops genetically engineered to contain insect toxins
or toxins of fungi which have components such as chitin which are common
to fungi and arthropods. The results of such studies have uncovered
important threats to bees but the evidence of injury to bees did not
seem to influence the release of crops capable of injuring bees for
commercial production.
Studies the impact of GM crops on bees included both behavior and
toxicity studies of the GM crops and studies of the purified toxins
produced in GM crops. A number of excellent reviews of studies of the
impact of GM crops or their toxins have been published(1,2,3). The
effect of insect toxins called protease inhibitors has been studied in
bee larvae (4) and the effect of a protease inhibitor (trypsin
inhibitor) on bee flight and longevity (5). The results of the studies
show that GM crops modified with bacillus thuringiensis toxins have
little or no effect on bees, as does the enzyme chitinase while
protease inhibitors consistently have detrimental impacts and the
glucanase enzyme modification to resist fungi also was found to effect
bees detrimentally.
The Bacillus thuringiensis toxin gene modifications are designated Cry
but there are numerous alleles and thses have distinct characteristics.
Cry 1 alleles were studied extesively along with Cry 9C and Cry 3B but
Cry II and CryV alleles have not yet been reported but probably should.
Here-to-fore the Cry genes have not proven detrimental to bees. In
contrast the protease inhibitors proved to be detrimental to the
longevity and behavior of bees. Chitinase (protection from insects and
fungi) did not prove detrimental to bees while glucanase (protection
from fungi) effected conditioned responses in bees.
Of the GM toxins genes in crops released for commercial production in
the United States only the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry genes and the
protease inhibitors seen widespread release. The GM crops with protease
inhibitors released for commercial production included potato, canola
(rapeseed) and creeping bentgrass (6).
The sound and logical approach would be to totally ban commercial
production of GM crops modified with protease inhibitor genes to
protect bees and to prevent long term damage to the entire environment.
Those crops released for commercial production containing the protease
inhibitor gene should be withdrawn. The impact of all GM releases on
bees should be carefull studied prior to release and crops injuring bees
should not be released for production.
References
1. Malone,L and Pham-Delegue,M “Effect of transgene products on honey
bees and bumblebees” 2001 Apidologie 32,287-304
2. Malone,L,Burgess,E,Philip,B,Tregida,E and Todd,J “Do GM crops and
their products have side effects on bees and bumblebees?” 2001 Apimondia
ISBN:0-620-27768-8 Proc 37th Int Apic,28Oct-1Nov 2001 Durban,South Africa
3. Picard-Nizou,A,Grison,R,Olsen,L,Pioche,C,Arnold,G and Pham-Delegue,M
“Impact of proteins used in plant genetic engineering: toxicity and
behavioral study in the honeybee”1997 J Econ Entomology 90,1710-16
4. Brodsgaard,H,Brodsgaard,C,Hansen,H and Lovei,G “Environmental risk
assessement of transgenic plants using honey bee larvae” 2001 Apimondia
ISBN:0-620-27768-8 Proc 37th Int Apic,28Oct-1Nov 2001 Durban,South Africa
5. Malone,E,Burgess,E, Gatehouse,H,Voisy,C,Tregida,E and Philip,B
“Effect of ingestion of a Bacillus thuringiernsis toxin and a trypsin
inhibitor on honey bee flight activity and longevity” 2001 Apidologie
32,57-68
6. Crops No Longer Regulated By USDA
http://www.nbiap.vt.edu/cfdocs/biopetitions1.cfm
.