>Errors-To: <rwolfson@concentric.net>
>X-Sender: rwolfson@pop3.concentric.net
>Date: Thu, 2 Apr 1998 17:04:20 -0500
>To: info@natural-law.ca
>From: Richard Wolfson <rwolfson@concentric.net>
>Subject: more comments from Dr. Cummins
>X-UIDL: 3cf4d4c1253e41994260edfb94b25d70
>
>There has been a great deal of publicity recently about claims of genetic
>engineers that by putting genes for herbicide tolerance into the
>chloroplasts the spread of such genes is eliminated because the pollen
>lacks such genes.
>
>Yesterday, I pointed out that the basic premise of the genetic engineers is
>faulty. Even in canola there are reports of paternal inheritance of
>cytoplasmic genes, even though most are maternal.
>
>Many plants have paternal (pollen) based inheritance of cytoplasmic genes,
>while many, if not most, have mixed pollen and egg transmission of genes.
>I presume that inspite of these problems, the money of the large companies
>will silence the truth.
>
>I want to point out other problems with the technique being used. First,
>each green plant cell contains 2500 to 5000 copies of each foreign
>transgene, compared to other transgenic crops that contain only 2 copies of
>each foreign transgene.
>
>Also, the antibiotic gene used in study citied was spectinomycin, an
>antibiotic used to treat gonorrhoea. It is also used to treat diseases of
>pigs and sheep currently. The new crops pump thousands of times more
>antibiotic resistance genes into the environment than do the older
>antibiotic resistance gene polluting varieties. [The concern of putting
>antibiotic resistance genes into the environment, leading to the spread of
>diseases that cannot be controlled by antibiotics, is described elsewhere]
>
>I think the biotech companies have gone quite mad, but with their money
>they can buy agreement from blind politicians and cynical academics.
>
>Prof. Joe Cummins
>jcummins@julian.uwo.ca
>
>_________________________________________________________
>Richard Wolfson, PhD
>Consumer Right to Know Campaign,
>for Mandatory Labelling and Long-term
>Testing of all Genetically Engineered Foods,
>500 Wilbrod Street
>Ottawa, ON Canada K1N 6N2
>tel. 613-565-8517 fax. 613-565-1596
>email: rwolfson@concentric.net
>
>Our website, http://www.natural-law.ca/genetic/geindex.html
>contains more information on genetic engineering as well as
>previous genetic engineering news items
>Subscription fee to genetic engineering news is $35 for 12 months
>See website for details.
>__________________________________________________________
>__________________________________________________________
>
>
>
>
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