Biotech Updates

HT Soybean (DAS-44406-6) Grown in Brazil is Compositionally Equivalent to Non-GM Soybean

September 7, 2016

Herbicide tolerant (HT) soybean DAS-444Ø6-6 is compositionally equivalent to non-transgenic soybean, according to a study conducted by Brandon Fast of Dow AgroSciences and colleagues. The results are published in GM Crops and Food.

The soybean event DAS-44406-6 (Enlist E3) was developed by MS Technologies and Dow AgroSciences LLC. It expresses the enzymes aryloxyalkanoate dioxygenase-12 (AAD-12), 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (2mEPSPS), and phosphinothricin acetyltransferase (PAT), to confer tolerance to herbicides 2,4-D, glyphosate, and glufosinate, respectively.

The field trials were conducted in Brazil from 2011-2014 growing season. The samples include biotech soybean (treated and untreated with herbicides) and its non-transgenic counterpart. Data were subjected to analysis of variance using a mixed model with entry designated as a fixed effect and location, replicate within location, and entry by location designated as random effects. Further statistical tests were done for comparison. Results showed that there was no statistically significant difference between sprayed or non-sprayed DAS-444Ø6-6 soybean and the non-GM isoline for 71 compositional components measured in forage and seed. These results supplement the compositional equivalency demonstrated in field trials conducted in the USA.

Read the research article in GM Crops and Food.