Biotech Updates

Effect of Bt Corn on Decomposer Communities in Soil

October 17, 2012

Scientists from Cornell University and University of Nebraska compared the decomposition rates and diversity of decomposers colonizing Bt corn residues with their non-GM counterparts. The study was conducted using litter bags placed in Nebraska fields for five months. Results of the study showed that there were no significant differences in the decomposition rate of Bt corn and its non-GM counterpart. The decomposition rate and the diversity of the decomposer communities vary significantly by plant part and placement, but not by genotype. With these results, the researchers concluded that Bt corn does not appear to pose a threat to the ecology of litter decomposer communities in soil.

Read the research article at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038071712003598.