Twenty years later
After 19 years of testing, the first GM animal was legalized in the United States
Sergey Vasiliev, N+1
The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the approval of the sale and use of a GM line of Atlantic salmon (salmon). This is reported by a press release issued by the agency, the FDA takes several actions involving genetically engineered plants and animals for food. The application was submitted back in 1996 – and is now fully satisfied. GM salmon AquAdvantage became the first GM animal allowed to be eaten in the United States.
"After extensive and comprehensive scientific research, the FDA has come to the decision that AquAdvantage salmon is as safe as unmodified and just as nutritious," the FDA website says. In addition, the agency confirmed the safety of artificially introduced genes for the fish itself, and also certified the manufacturer's statement that gene modification really significantly accelerates its growth.
The AquAdvantage line has been created by AquaBounty since the late 1980s and carries two key changes in the genome. It has a growth hormone gene, borrowed from a noticeably larger relative, the Pacific chinook salmon. Another DNA fragment obtained from beldyuga helps this hormone to affect the GM salmon's own genes. As a result, fish, which usually grow only in spring and summer, continue to gain weight all year round. These manipulations do not affect the final size and nutritional value of salmon, but they significantly reduce the time required for breeding – up to one and a half years instead of three.
At the same time, a quarter less feed is enough for GM salmon per kilogram of weight gain than for ordinary - VMTo prevent the possible impact of genetically modified fish on natural ecosystems, AquAdvantage is not planned to be released into the wild: they will be bred only on fish farms.
The company has already built a small enterprise in Panama for the production of GM salmon with a capacity of 100 tons per year.
Meanwhile, another GM animal remains under consideration by the FDA - it is not edible at all. We are talking about Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, carriers of a number of dangerous tropical diseases, a modified line of which cannot participate in the transmission of infection. The OX513A line created by Oxitec has received approval and is even used in Brazil, but it has been tested in the USA for several years. Both Oxitec and AquaBounty are divisions of Intrexon biotech Corporation.
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20.11.2015