Biotech Updates

Scientists Find Horizontal Gene Transfer of No Significance

June 13, 2008

The controversy surrounding the transfer of antibiotic-resistance gene from transgenic plants to bacteria has been put to rest when scientists from France and Switzerland found that horizontal gene transfer is so insignificant that transgenic plants play no part in the spread of antibiotic resistances. The scientists studied soil bacteria from a field where genetically modified Bt maize has been growing for years. Antibiotic resistance genes occur naturally in bacteria due to the fact that these genes are already commonly found in the soil.

To read more, visit: http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/news/365.docu.html.