Release of pharmaceutical proteins from modified plants to hydroponic solutions and to groundwater

 

Pharm crops are genetically modified (GM) crops containing genes from humans, animals or bacteria that code for products (mainly proteins) used to treat diseases of humans and animals. In an earlier report on the problems associated with field tests of pharm crops highlighted the pollution of ground ands surface water with the pharmaceutically active products(1). Recently, reports have begun to appear indicating that the pharmaceutical products are extruded from the GM crops in root exudates in good quantity allowing harvest of the product from hydroponic media . The products extruded include human antibody protein from tobacco roots (20 and human and bacterial enzymes from tobacco (3). Rhizo secretion of pharmaceutical proteins into hydroponic media may be a safe and effective way of producing proteins continuously from GM crops with limited threat to the environment.

The study of rhizo secretion also pinpoints an important flaw in the regulation of field tests and field production of pharm crops. The United states department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) who regulate field testing of pharm crops emphasize measures that prevent spread of pollen from pharm crops but do not consider the measures needed to prevent groundwater pollution by exudates or plant decay (4) and advisory meetings on pharm crop testing have not considered the impact on groundwater (5). The Canadian Food Inspection Agency regulates field testing of pharm crops in Canada, the agency contracted two reports on Pharm crops , the first considered plants as bioreactors (6) and that report considered the need for safety regulations but ignored ground water and the second (7) dealt with the impact of pharm crops on biodiversity, but even that report did not deal with the groundwater pollution by pharmaceutical products that are active in minute quantity. Even though rizosphere secretion is well studied the North American regulators who permitted numerous field trials of pharm crops but maintained a n umbrella of confidentiality over the tests and their results. In London, Ontario tests of a pharm crop of an extremely potent immune suppressant, interleukin 10, was undertaken without public notification and no means of alerting residents whose wells would be polluted to some degree by the pharmaceutical product. The regulators seem to have been issued “blinders” that make them ignore a most important pollution source.

The public must be provided with location of field tests for pharm crops and with the complete monitoring protocol for the field experiments. People who use water wells and experience new unexplained maladies should consider looking for field trials in their immediate area (acknowledging that regulators deal with the tests as confidential studies). The best immediate remedy from the hazards of the field tests is to restrict future testing to fully contained facilities.

References are available on request , please state the name of the paper