# Lifestyles & Discussion > Science & Technology >  Biotechnology

## Natural Citizen

Genetically Engineered Trees:  The New Frontier of Biotechnology

This groundbreaking report looks at the recent push for the commercialization of GE trees by biotech, energy, and paper companies and exposes the truth behind industry claims that these GE trees promote "environmental sustainability." Contrary to these industry claims, the report finds that GE trees will actually accelerate the proliferation of large-scale, chemical-centric, monoculture plantations stocked with proprietary GE trees; a lucrative prospect for companies promoting this technology, but not for the environment. This report sounds the alarm about the potential harms that GE trees pose and calls for the exploration of other, truly sustainable alternatives to GE trees before taking this path in the woods.

Download the Report (PDF)


Aside...




> _Commercializing GE trees could be devastating to the  environment_,” Debbie Barker, international program director  for the Center for Food Safety, told Eco Watch. “_Factory  forests’ will accelerate and expand large-scale,  chemical-intensive, monoculture plantations. We need to  understand the risks in order to determine if GE trees are a  sustainable way forward or a dangerous diversion_.” 
> 
> Among the concerns laid out in the report is the immediate risk  GE trees would pose to natural trees in the surrounding area. Not  only are they expected to suck up at least twice as much water as  normal trees, but GE trees are also known for their ability to  spread seeds and pollens over great distances. If wild trees  become contaminated they could be more vulnerable to pests and  pathogens, thus risking the life span of natural US forests. The  GE trees would also require substantial amounts of fertilizers  and pesticides as well.
> 
> “_Eucalyptus is the first forest tree now being considered for  approval for unrestricted planting, but some of the largest  biotechnology, paper and energy corporations are experimenting on  pine, poplar, chestnut and several varieties of fruit_,” said  Barker, who also edited the report.
> 
>   Despite these and other warnings, biotech corporations have a  strong incentive to argue against any environmental objections.  If GE eucalyptus is approved, according to Eco Watch, ArborGen  expects that company profits will explode from $25 million to  $500 million in just five years.


http://rt.com/usa/genetically-engine...vironment-404/


Also.... Hemp Amendment: Massie and others Present Amendment to FARM Bill to Legalize Hemp!

----------


## tod evans

I've cut a few thousand board feet of a product called Lyptus.

It's marketed as a fast growing mahogany substitute.

I know nothing of any environmental concerns.

----------


## Natural Citizen

> I've cut a few thousand board feet of a product called Lyptus.
> 
> It's marketed as a fast growing mahogany substitute.
> 
> I know nothing of any environmental concerns.


This isn't really my area of expertise, tod. The report just reminded me that I've been meaning to try to find a home for all of the relevant biotechnology news without too much drama. At least not like we have in the general threads. I just kind of put it here to get it started because biotech is becoming relevant to geopolitics as a whole.

Thanks for adding to it though. You work with these products as I recall so are probably better qualified to make some sense out of where a lot of the different materials come from. Naturally, that is.

As far as marketing these geneticall modified trees, "biotech corporations have a  strong incentive to argue against any environmental objections.  If GE eucalyptus is approved, according to Eco Watch, ArborGen  expects that company profits will explode from $25 million to  $500 million in just five years." - from the report. 

What caught my interest in it (besides the genetic modification) was it's application in a manner that may promote natural imbalance globally. Besides the fact that the same thing they are trying to do could be acheived with Hemp agriculture. Of course, I'm still thinking that if they allow that then it too may be of the GMO variety which opens up a completely different can of worms right next to the one we already have.

----------


## tod evans

It wouldn't surprise me to see genetically modified hardwoods in the future..

Best I can gather the article is discussing primarily pulpwoods..

Thing is if there are GMO trees being planted it'll be at least a decade before they're anywhere near old enough to harvest and then it'll be a crapshoot if the fast growth timber will even be usable.

Major, huge gamble for any company to invest in.

Cherry, walnut and soft maple are some domestic hardwoods that've been fiddled with back in the 60's and are just now coming into harvest for use as lumber. I refuse to use southern grown hardwood because of the large growth rings and I suspect northern grown wood that's been modified for faster growth will exhibit looser grain structure too..

I haven't seen anything odd in the domestic hardwoods yet.

----------


## Origanalist

There was a whole bunch of those genetically modified trees that were grown around here. They went up really fast but a bunch of them got knocked down in a wind storm. I don't know if anybody actually made any money on them. I found the whole thing kind of creepy.

----------


## tod evans

I've got a question.....

When using the term "genetically modified" are folks talking specifically about things such as gene splicing that's only been available for a few years or are they talking about selective breeding/hybrids that man has been doing for centuries?

----------


## Natural Citizen

> There was a whole bunch of those genetically modified trees that were grown around here. They went up really fast but a bunch of them got knocked down in a wind storm. I don't know if anybody actually made any money on them. I found the whole thing kind of creepy.


Yeah, you're up there in the sticks, huh.  Would have to be able to see how the seeds that blow from them actually spread and begin to grow, I suppose. This is different than ordinary gmo plants becfause of the fact that they are trees and have more range to work with.

Do you know what kind of trees they were growing up your way, Origanalist?

----------


## Natural Citizen

> I've got a question.....
> 
> When using the term "genetically modified" are folks talking specifically about things such as gene splicing that's only been available for a few years or are they talking about selective breeding/hybrids that man has been doing for centuries?


Genes. Genetically engineered . It's in the report. Important note about the relatively short period of existence of the practice too, tod. That's a big deal. They don't have any idea what they are going to do to nature here. They know they'll make millions of dollars though.




> Despite the trees’ propensity for  cooler climates, ArborGen has sought to promote the trees’ growth  in the south eastern US under the notion that they will help the  environment sustain itself.

----------


## Origanalist

> I've got a question.....
> 
> When using the term "genetically modified" are folks talking specifically about things such as gene splicing that's only been available for a few years or are they talking about selective breeding/hybrids that man has been doing for centuries?


This is new, I've never seen trees grow that fast.

----------


## Origanalist

> Genes. Genetic modification. It's in the report.


I'm not positive of the specific breed. I know they were being grown for pulp and I think they were cottonwood.

----------


## tod evans

> This is new, I've never seen trees grow that fast.


I've got to wonder if the trees are the result of some geek in a lab coat or some farmer cross pollinating desirable characteristics...

Don't suppose it matters though if they can't survive winds...

----------


## tod evans

> Genes. Genetic modification. It's in the report. Important note about the relatively short period of existence, tod. That's a big deal. They don't have any idea what they are going to do to nature here. They know they'll make millions of dollars though.


I understand it's in the report, my question was about the folks discussing GMO's on the forums.

----------


## Natural Citizen

> I understand it's in the report, my question was about the folks discussing GMO's on the forums.


In the forums the controversy has been regarding genetically engineered/modified food. 

Except in the Health Freedom thread, I think they tend to discuss heirlooms and hybrids.

----------


## Origanalist

> I've got to wonder if the trees are the result of some geek in a lab coat or some farmer cross pollinating desirable characteristics...
> 
> Don't suppose it matters though if they can't survive winds...


Lol, I don't think they came from cross pollination. And a lot of local land owners decided it was easy money, and the word is they didn't make it. If it's too good to be true.......

----------


## donnay

*Effect of Genetically Modified Poplars on Soil Microbial Communities during the Phytoremediation of Waste Mine Tailings*
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209168/

GM Poplar Study (Oregon)
http://www.cof.orst.edu/coops/tbgrc/..._Chronicle.pdf

One of the questions I have with the GM Poplar is, when burning the wood for a heat source, what is released into the air when burned?

----------


## donnay

> I've got a question.....
> 
> When using the term "genetically modified" are folks talking specifically about things such as gene splicing that's only been available for a few years or are they talking about selective breeding/hybrids that man has been doing for centuries?



The tree gene is spliced with something.  For example: the GMO Hybrid Poplars are spliced with a rabbit gene.  They are also spliced with herbicides and pesticides too--making them Roundup Ready® and glyphosate tolerant.

.http://scholarsarchive.library.orego...pdf?sequence=1

----------


## Natural Citizen

> *Effect of Genetically Modified Poplars on Soil Microbial Communities during the Phytoremediation of Waste Mine Tailings*
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209168/
> 
> GM Poplar Study (Oregon)
> http://www.cof.orst.edu/coops/tbgrc/..._Chronicle.pdf
> 
> One of the questions I have with the GM Poplar is, when burning the wood for a heat source, what is released into the air when burned?


Do they give any hint of what they think in these papers, donnay? I'll definitely read them  but just can't do it right this second. I have to go out and do some things.

----------


## Origanalist

Thanks donnay, you got me to looking and they were poplars. There are some pics of the very trees I was talking about here; http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/2013/May/...lantations.pdf

----------


## Natural Citizen

> Thanks donnay, you got me to looking and they were poplars. There are some pics of the very trees I was talking about here; http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/2013/May/...lantations.pdf


Reminds me of what's happening with Weather derivatives 

And, of course, Monsanto Buys Weather Big Data Company Climate Corporation For Around $1.1B

They'll probably be replanting where you are but who knows. Maybe not. There's obiously some risk involved. These were root balls or seeds, they planted?

----------


## Origanalist

> Reminds me of what's happening with Weather derivatives 
> 
> And, of course, Monsanto Buys Weather Big Data Company Climate Corporation For Around $1.1B
> 
> They'll probably be replanting where you are but who knows. Maybe not. There's obiously some risk involved. These were root balls or seeds, they planted?


They were referred to as clones, but I'm not sure if that meant cuttings.

----------


## Natural Citizen

This video is a project by the Centers for Applied Competitive Technologies (CACT): http://www.makingitincalifornia.com

The CACT is part of the California Community College Chancellor's Office, Economic & Workforce Development program: http://www.cccewd.net/




Life Technologies
http://www.lifetechnologies.com

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (jbei)
http://www.lbl.gov

Bio-Rad
http://www.bio-rad.com

Genentech
http://www.gene.com

Gilead
http://www.gilead.com

23andMe
http://www.23andme.com/

Sandia National Laboratories
http://www.sandia.gov/

----------


## Natural Citizen

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...way-plate.html

The majestic specimens are ‘frankenfish’ — genetically modified salmon created in a secretive research base in the Panama rainforest.


'Frankenfish' are genetically modified salmon created by company AquaBounty which grow at twice the rate of wild Atlantic Salmon, and are constantly hungry (file picture)


The salmon have been given genes from two other species of fish to make them grow twice as fast as normal. And while most people would baulk at the prospect, GM fish could soon be coming to a dinner table near you. 

Last week, Canadian authorities gave approval for the commercial production of GM salmon eggs for the first time, while U.S. food regulators are in the final stages of approving the fish for sale in supermarkets and restaurants. 

And where GM salmon lead, other animals will follow. Plans are in place to genetically modify up to 50 other species, including trout and the tropical white fish tilapia, for human consumption. 

GM chickens, cattle, sheep and pigs won’t be far behind.


The prospect of the first commercially produced GM livestock has, not surprisingly, raised concerns. Even those who support GM crop production believe the risks involved in GM animals are simply too great.
So what is so dangerous about these innocuous-looking fish? And could they be served in the UK soon?

GM salmon are the creation of AquaBounty, a biotechnology company based in Massachusetts and listed on the London Stock Market. 

The firm has owned the rights to produce GM salmon since 1996. It also produces feeds to speed up the growth and boost the immunity of farmed shrimp. 

The fish have been given two genes from other species — a growth hormone gene from the Chinook salmon, the largest of the Pacific salmon species, and a gene from the eel-like ocean pout which ‘switches on’ the growth hormone.

The combination of these two genes allows the GM salmon to keep producing a growth factor hormone — the substance that triggers their metabolism to eat more and put on weight — all the year round. 



The farmed fish have been given the growth hormone from the Chinook salmon and a gene from the ocean pout which switches the growth gene on


Normal young salmon, in contrast, go through growth spurts only in the spring and summer. The rest of the year — when food is less scarce — their growth slows dramatically.

With growth hormone coursing through their bodies, the GM salmon can reach market size of around 13lb in 16 to 18 months, making them cheaper to produce.

AquaBounty is spreading the production and marketing of the GM fish over three countries.

Around 100,000 salmon eggs will be created every year in its factory at Prince Edward Island, Canada, before being shipped to Panama. 

There they will be grown into adults in landlocked ‘sealed tanks’ for 18 months, killed and sold in the U.S. 

Pro-GM scientists insist there is no reason why GM food should be any more dangerous to humans than ordinary food. 

After all, mankind has been tampering with the genetic make-up of animals and plants since the dawn of farming through selective natural breeding. 

Genetic modification, they say, is simply a more precise addition or subtraction of genes.

But there are two major differences with GM. Changes in animals and plants that once took centuries can now take place within just one generation.

And genes from one species can be added to another. Tomatoes can be given anti-freeze genes from Arctic fish to make them withstand frosts. Rice can be given genes from daffodils to make it a rich source of Vitamin A. 

Critics say the combination of genes from different species could have unforeseen consequences.

While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found no worrying differences between the meat of GM and ordinary fish, no one has yet been able to show whether the fish are safe over many years of consumption.



While the salmon are meant to be farmed if they do escape they could breed and wipe out wild fish


And according to U.S. charity Ocean Conservancy, there are significant differences between GM and conventional farmed salmon.

GM salmon appears to have less omega 3 — the fatty acid that can protect against heart disease. It also appears to have higher levels of a growth hormone called IGF-1. 

Studies of a small number of salmon suggest that six nutrients are present at values that differ by more than 10 per cent. 

The GM variety had less folic acid, less zinc, less magnesium and less phosphorus — but more niacin and vitamin B6. 

The findings suggest ‘potential food quality differences’, according to the charity Ocean Conservancy.

There are also concerns that GM salmon could have more allergy-triggering chemicals. The FDA concluded that was not the case — but its findings were based on a study of only six fish.

This is not enough evidence to conclude that GM salmon is harmful. But it raises questions which have not been fully answered.

There are more concerns about the threat to the environment they pose. Wild Atlantic salmon are already threatened by over-fishing and the accidental release of farmed salmon.

Introducing a population of bigger, tougher and faster-growing salmon could finish them off.

Dr Robert Devlin, who has grown his own variant of GM salmon at the Centre of Aquaculture and Environmental Research in Vancouver, says they are more aggressive than conventional fish.

‘They’re hungry all the time,’ he told CBC News.

A study at McGill University in Quebec this summer found that GM salmon can breed with wild brown trout, creating a hybrid that grows even faster than the GM salmon.

In a simulation, the hybrid ate far more food than wild fish sharing the same waters, and led to wild fish being far smaller than they should have been.


 
US food regulators are about to approve the fish for sale, while Canada has given the go-ahead for the production of GM eggs for the first time (file picture)


AquaBounty insists that won’t happen because it processes the eggs in its factory to make the fish sterile and so unable to breed.

However, data from the company suggests the process is not 100 per cent effective. And, according to regulators, it needs to make only 95 per cent of eggs sterile.

AquaBounty also says the risks of escape are minuscule because the fish will be stored in secure tanks miles from the sea.

But the experience in Scotland —where at least two million farmed salmon have escaped into the wild in the past decade — shows that keeping salmon secure is difficult.

Just last month, thousands escaped from a ‘secure’ Norwegian farm and could now mate with wild salmon.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says no company has yet applied to the European Commission to farm commercially or import GM fish into Europe. 

Approval from the commission would need a rigorous environmental risk assessment from the European Food Safety Authority.

But European firms are watching closely. And the technology has supporters at the heart of Government.

The previous chief scientist Sir John Beddington warned three years ago that the world faced a ‘perfect storm’ of a growing human population, food shortages and climate change. He argued it was hard to justify not using GM to feed the world.



It is possible that canned imported GM salmon could arrive in the UK within the next few years (file picture)


GM fish farms are unlikely in the UK for the foreseeable future. But, as pressure from scientists and biotech companies grows, it is possible imported canned GM salmon could arrive within the next few years.

Fish experts are deeply concerned. Sir Michael Wigan, author of The Salmon, believes GM salmon almost certainly will get into the wild.

‘Salmon are incredible survivors’, he says. ‘They survived the industrial revolution in England where water wheels went up every five miles of river. They survived in the Tyne when it was an industrial sewer. 

‘With the aid of its GM boost, who knows what this fish will be capable of doing.’

And once in the wild these super-charged, aggressive salmon — with their year-round appetite — could be devastating for the endangered natural wild salmon beloved by anglers and conservationists.

Nature finds a way. And that way could be into the Atlantic, into British waters and ultimately onto our dinner plates.

----------


## Origanalist

Suddenly I'm really not very hungry.

----------


## eduardo89

> Suddenly I'm really not very hungry.


I am. If I can get twice the salmon for the same price, I'm in.

----------


## Danke

> I am. If I can get twice the salmon for the same price, I'm in.


It is called the "munchies."

----------


## eduardo89

> It is called the "munchies."


Can you write in bigger font, my eyes are really dry.

----------


## Danke

> Can you write in bigger font, my eyes are really dry.


Partaking in your product will be your downfall.

----------


## Origanalist

> I am. If I can get twice the salmon for the same price, I'm in.


Not I. But hey, eat all you want.

----------


## Danke

> Not I. But hey, eat all you want.


After reading your post, all I could think of is what I heard in a seedy part of town in Nagasaki, Japan from the guys out in front of certain establishments yelling, "namehodai."

----------


## Natural Citizen

> I am. If I can get twice the salmon for the same price, I'm in.


Meh. Never mind.

----------


## Natural Citizen

> Biologists have studied DNA by observing it experimentally with a variety of techniques, which have only recently been supplemented by research in silico, that is to say, the study of DNA by means of computer simulations


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0103085244.htm

----------


## Natural Citizen

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-...lony-collapse/




> In an effort to understand the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder, an Australian research group has begun attaching tiny geolocation tags to the backs of over 5,000 bees. The devices will monitor the movement of the insects and allow researchers to know if and when their normally habitual behavior goes awry, thus providing potential clues to the source of CCD.









> Thousands of honey bees in Australia are being fitted with tiny sensors as part of a world-first research program to monitor the insects and their environment using a technique known as 'swarm sensing'.
> 
> Up to 5,000 sensors, measuring 2.5mm x 2.5mm are being fitted to the backs of the bees in Hobart, Tasmania, before being released into the wild. It's the first time such large numbers of insects have been used for environmental monitoring. The research aims to improve honey bee pollination and productivity as well as help understand the drivers of bee Colony Collapse Disorder, a condition decimating honey bee populations worldwide.
> 
> More information on our blog: http://csironewsblog.com/2014/01/15/t...

----------


## Natural Citizen

> Complex heritable traits are not only determined by changes in the DNA sequence. Scientists from the University of Groningen Bioinformatics Centre, together with their French colleagues, have shown that epigenetic marks can affect traits such as flowering time and architecture in plants. Furthermore, these marks are passed on for many generations in a stable manner. Their results were published in _Science on_ the 6th of February 2014. It seems that a revision of genetics textbooks is now in order.


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0211094159.htm

----------


## Natural Citizen

*Scientists wipe out malaria-carrying mosquitoes in lab with male-only offspring

*


> In a study published in the journal _Nature Communications_, scientists from Imperial College London have tested a new genetic method that distorts the sex ratio of Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes, the main transmitters of the malaria parasite, so that the female mosquitoes that bite and pass the disease to humans are no longer produced.
> 
> In the first laboratory tests, the method created a fully fertile mosquito strain that produced 95 per cent male offspring. 
> 
> 
> The scientists introduced the genetically modified mosquitoes to five caged wild-type mosquito populations. In four of the five cages, this eliminated the entire population within six generations, because of the lack of females. The hope is that if this could be replicated in the wild, this would ultimately cause the malaria-carrying mosquito population to crash.
> 
> This is the first time that scientists have been able to manipulate the sex ratios of mosquito populations. The researchers believe the work paves the way for a pioneering approach to controlling malaria.


Continued - Scientists wipe out malaria-carrying mosquitoes in lab with male-only offspring

----------


## Natural Citizen

*Neil deGrasse Tyson escalates defense of GMO products*...



> _Im amazed how much rejection genetically modified foods are  receiving from the public. It smacks of the fear factor that  exists at every new emergent science, where people dont fully  understand it or dont fully know or embrace its consequences,  and so therefore reject it,_ Tyson told a French interviewer  originally.
> _We are creating and modifying the biology of the world to  serve our needs,_added the Comos host._I dont have a  problem with that, because weve been doing that for tens of  thousands of years. So chill out.
> 
> _Tysons diatribe garnered hundreds of thousands of hits on  YouTube in a matter of days, and this week he writes on Facebook  that a number of the responses he received were geared towards  particular aspects of GMOs, such as labeling and food safety,  while discounting the true meaning of his remarks.
> 
> _Had I given a full talk on this subject, or if GMOs were the  subject of a sit-down interview, then I would have raised many  nuanced points, regarding labeling, patenting, agribusiness,  monopolies, etc. I've noticed that almost all objections to my  comments center on these other issues, Tyson told his _ _Facebook__ followers on Sunday.
> _
> _If your objection to GMOs is the morality of selling  non-prerennial seed stocks, then focus on that. If your objection  to GMOs is the monopolistic conduct of agribusiness, then focus  on that. But to paint the entire concept of GMO with these  particular issues is to blind yourself to the underlying truth of  what humans have been doing -- and will continue to do -- to  nature so that it best serves our survival. That's what all  organisms do when they can, or would do, if they could. Those  that didn't, have gone extinct, he added. In life, be  cautious of how broad is the brush with which you paint the views  of those you don't agree with.
> _
> ...


Continued - Neil deGrasse Tyson escalates defense of GMO products after YouTube video goes viral

----------

