Poisonous Potato Controversy

Poisonous Potato Controversy
(Scientific Miscommunication in UK)
Desiree Red Potato
"The genes that were added direct the manufacture of plant lectins which are harmful to insects, we know that they're toxic to insects, so it isn't shocking if they also have toxicity to animals. That was what we wanted to know, and that's why the tests were carried out."
University of Durham
Snowdrop (Galanthus) Lectin

Galanthus nivalis agglutinin (GNA) gene
LECTIN
Dr. Pusztai claimed that feeding GM potatoes to rats damaged their immune systems and caused pathological damage to the gut.
Dr. Pusztais Mistake was
World in Action (TV Program)
Scientific Forum
Pusztais Experiment
feeding rats on raw and cooked genetically modified potatoes, using Desiree Red potatoes as controls. One of the controls was unmodified desiree red potatoes mixed with snowdrop lectin.
"We had two kinds of potatoes - one GM and the other non-GM. I had expected that the GM potato, with 20 micrograms of a component against the several grams of other components, should not cause any problems. But we found problems. Our studies clearly show that the effects were not due to that little gene expression, but it depended on the way the gene had been inserted into the potato genome and what it did to the potato genome."
The Controls
GM Non-GM
Cooked & Raw
Potato INSERTED with snowdrop lectin
Potato MIXED with snowdrop lectin
Pusztais Findings
The rats fed on the genetically modified potatoes showed intestine damage and harm to their immune systems. These effects were not observed in rats fed on unmodified potatoes, or unmodified potatoes mixed with snowdrop lectin. The team concluded that the effects observed were a result of the genetic modification, not the snowdrop lectin.
The stated objective of Dr Pusztai's experiments was to determine the effect of feeding GM potatoes to rats, but the experimental design did not allow that objective to be addressed because there were no suitable controls.
GM Potato showed damage to rats immune system and the intestine
Non-GM Potato mixed with lectin
did not show any problem
Non-GM Potato did not show any problem
The Experimental Research was faulty because:

The experiments were poorly designed. Different diets were added without sufficient controls. Few rats were tested and were given nonstandard control diets. Data analysis was improper and a failure to account for inconsistencies in results between experiments.
The Royal Society Concluded

The work is flawed in many aspects of design, execution. They found no convincing evidence of adverse effects from GM potatoes. Dr Pusztai's experiments lacked the appropriate controls and replications to draw *THAT THE WORK WAS "FLAWED IN MANY ASPECTS OF DESIGN, EXECUTION AND ANALYSIS AND NO CONCLUSIONS SHOULD BE DRAWN FROM IT". any conclusions. MOREOVER, EVEN IF THE EXPERIMENTS HAD BEEN PROPERLY DEVISED AND CARRIED
OUT "IT WOULD BE UNJUSTIFIABLE TO DRAW FROM THEM GENERAL CONCLUSIONS ABOUT WHETHER GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOODS ARE HARMFUL TO HUMAN BEINGS".
Who contradicted Pusztai?

Rowett Institute Phillip James, director of Rowett Royal Society forefront of defending the GM Technology House of Common Science and Technology Select Committee with Royal Society Biotechnology Presentation Group set up by the government Rebuttal Unit- by the Royal Society Prof. John Pickett against the publication of Pusztais data. Sir Peter Lachman- Sec. of the Royal society.
Who aided Pusztai?

13 countries supported Pusztais result Dr. Stanley Ewan co- author of Pusztais paper The Green Groups claimed that Pusztai had been vindicated. The Lancet Published Pusztais paper
What happened in the end?

The potatoes were subsequently destroyed, along with all the details of their modifications and Cambridge Agricultural Genetics Subsequently ceased business.
What were the effects of the controversy?

More issues arise contradicting GM Technology Environmental Issues
Safety of food Natural or Genetic Engineering Risk Contamination - Manufactured Risk
Approach of the public to GMO - Decision making

Poisonous Potato Controversy

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Poisonous Potato Controversy

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Poisonous Potato Controversy

(Scientific Miscommunication in UK)

Desiree Red Potato

Snowdrop (Galanthus) Lectin

Dr. Pusztais Mistake was

World in Action (TV Program)

Cooked & Raw

Potato INSERTED with snowdrop lectin

Potato MIXED with snowdrop lectin

GM Potato showed damage to rats immune system and the intestine

Non-GM Potato mixed with lectin

did not show any problem

Non-GM Potato did not show any problem

The Experimental Research was faulty because:

The Royal Society Concluded

Who contradicted Pusztai?

Who aided Pusztai?

What happened in the end?

What were the effects of the controversy?

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