转基因作物的非预期效应及其检测

随着转基因产业的飞速发展,转基因食品的安全性逐步引起人们的广泛关注.外源基因的非预期效应可能引起转基因食品的营养成分发生改变,甚至产生一些新的毒性物质,可能对人类和动物健康以及环境形成潜在的危害,是转基因食品安全性评价的重要内容之一.由于外源基因的非预期效应具有潜在性,非预见性,因此以“实质等同性”为基础的定向评价方法很难充分考虑到由遗传修饰引起的非预期效应.文章主要阐述了转基因植物整合位点的分布和机制、转基因作物可能产生的非预期效应,以及利用基因芯片技术、蛋白质组定量分析技术、代谢组分析技术分别从mRNA水平、蛋白质水平、代谢水平上比较转基因作物和非转基因作物基因表达的差异,在食品安全评价中会是完善定向方法的补充方案,对转基因食品的安全性评价至关重要.

Unintended effects and their detection in genetically modified crops

With the rapid development of the genetically modified(GM) industry,the safety of GM foods gradually attracted people’s extensive attentions.The nutrition compounds of the GM crops might be changed and even generate some toxic compounds,caused by the unknown effects of exogenous genes,which might possess potential harmfulness to the health of human beings,animals and the environment.Therefore,to evaluate the unintended effects of exogenous genes is one of the most important contents of the safety assessment of GM foods.Because of potential unintended effects and non-predictability of exogenous genes,the methods of orientation evaluation based on "substantial equivalence" is very difficult to fully take the genetic modification caused by the unintended effects into account.In current study,the distribution and mechanism of integration sites in transgenic plant was illuminated,as well the unintended effects that is possibly induced by GM crops,to compare the difference of gene expression between GM crops and non-GM crops using gene chip,quantitative proteomic analysis and metabolomics analysis technologies at mRNA,protein as well as metabolism levels will be a complementary scheme for the orientation evaluation in the process of food safety assessment and also crucial to the safety assessment of GM foods.