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Approved-By: Laurel Hopwood <[log in to unmask]>
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Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2000 19:29:10 -0500
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From: Laurel Hopwood <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Lancet correspondence
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edited and posted by Laurel Hopwood
THE LANCET, Volume 355, Number 9201 29 January 2000
Correspondence
Do genetically modified foods affect human health?
The insecticide criendotoxin is not harmful when used judiciously as a
spray. Much larger quantities would be consumed from plants making the
toxin after the incorporation of the bacterial gene, Bt. Another potential
problem is that the promoter used to switch on any gene after it has been
transferred might also switch on one of the many silent genes that form
part of the normal DNA. A third uncertainty is the importance of the
finding that foreign DNA ingested by mice may reach peripheral leucocytes,
spleen, and
liver via the intestinal-wall mucosa.1
People in some countries, particularly the USA, already eat a lot of GM
foods. People in the UK do not. If GM foods are bad to eat, a robust study
relating consumption to health records should show the adverse effects.
With labelling, a prospective epidemiological study would become possible.
John Godfrey
41 Lawford Road, London, NW5 2LG, UK
1Schubbert R, Renze D, Schmitz B, Doerfler W. Foreign (M13) DNA ingested by
mice reaches peripheral leukocytes, spleen, and liver via the intestinal
wall mucosa and can be covalently linked to mouse DNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci
USA 1997; 94: 961-66 [PubMed].
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