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This research aims to analyze the crisis of food insecurity within the context of social inequality, during a times of increased use of genetic biotechnology in agriculture and the production of transgenics. The study seeks to answer whether large-scale agricultural production using genetically modified crops can solve the problem of hunger and contribute to a more equal society. It examines the hunger crisis and social disparities to establish common concepts and assumptions. The impact of neoliberal policies on worsening the food crisis is also evaluated, along with the discourse surrounding transgenics. Finally, from bioethical perspective the main arguments for the commercial release of transgenics, as well as their benefits and drawbacks, are reviewed to address the central research question. Using a deductive method and bibliographic research, especially from secondary sources, the study concludes that transgenics have not yet resolved the problem of hunger, and when combined with the current economic and financial system, they exacerbate the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article is a review of Cecilia Gárgano's book that analyzes the modernization of the Argentine countryside, the role of INTA (National Institute of Agricultural Technology), agribusiness, and socio-environmental issues. The book seeks to repoliticize these processes and highlight resistances and alternatives to hegemonic models. It analyzes the history of Argentine agriculture from the Green Revolution to agribusiness, focusing on the impacts of genetically modified crops and the expansion of the agricultural frontier. It also examines tensions and interests at play in the Latin American context from a decolonial perspective. [Extracted from the article]

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Cotton crop production in the Mexicali Valley mainly affected by diseases that cause wilt and root rot, which are associated with Fusarium spp. The aim of this work is was evaluate the effect of inoculation with 4 strains of Fusarium solani on the percentage of severity in transgenic cotton seedlings. The results indicated that the T-ICA03 and T-ICA01 strain generated a 90% severity percentage, as well as a greater number of infection points in the root system compared to the other strains evaluated. In 20-day-old plants, the photosynthetic efficiency and chlorophyll was evaluate, observing significant changes between the inoculated strains and the control during the experiment. Both physiological parameters explain the possible effects of the infection at the level of nutrient and water transport that negatively impacts the photosynthetic system of the plant. However, due to its specificity, the use of photosynthetic efficiency is mainly recommended as a non-destructive parameter to assess photosystem damage caused by F. solani infection in transgenic cotton plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Clivajes - Revista de Ciencias Sociales is the property of Universidad Veracruzana and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Agronomía & Ambiente is the property of Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Bistua: Revista de la Facultad de Ciencias Básicas is the property of Facultad de Ciencias Basicas de la Universidad de Pamplona and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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Genome Edited Plants (PEG) are obtained by genetic engineering techniques in which DNA can be inserted, deleted, modified or replaced sequences in the genome of the plant. Unlike previous engineering techniques in which random genetic material was inserted into the genome (transgenic plants), one or several stable point modifications are made to specific sites at PEGs. The modification must be inheritable, and the transgenic sequence is eliminated in segregation. In vegetative propagated crops, molecular alternatives have been found such as the use of ribonucleoprotein complexes to eliminate foreign sequences in the first regenerated plants. PEGs are indistinguishable from plants produced by spontaneous mutagenesis, classical mutagenesis or by introgression of the desired allele through plant breeding. The future of these technologies is promising due to the large number of studies already published, and others that are under development, which seek solutions to basic and practical problems. The PEGs are almost identical to the plants obtained by plant breeding and their risk analysis should be evaluated according to the resulting product, rather than the process that created it. This type of regulation will be done first in the United States and Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This research analyzes Greenpeace Mexico's discourse on the concepts of food security, food sovereignty and the right to food. Methodology: This article employs a qualitative methodology with the assistance of Atlas.ti software. This methodology is based on the theory of framing (diagnostic and prognostic functions). A total 151 pieces of Greenpeace Mexico's website from 2007-2017 are analyzed. Results: The frames found are described and the most important key words and expressions are exposed. Limitations: This research is limited to the analysis of Greenpeace Mexico's discourse. The study of other Greenpeace units' discourse would allow assessing whether the NGO maintains a homogenous discourse at a global level or whether there are significant differences according to local circumstances. Conclusions: In summary, Greenpeace Mexico's discourse around the concepts of "food security", "food sovereignty" and the "right to food" is clearly anti-neoliberal but does not reflect the academic debate regarding these concepts. The complaints (diagnostic frame function) and proposals (prognostic frame function) in Greenpeace Mexico's discourse are identified, recreating the narrative of five specific frames. The most repeated oppositional terms and expressions are also, identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this article is to analyze the role of the state in regulating the freeing of the environment of trans-genetic crops in Mexico's agricultural sector since the Law on Biosecurity of Genetically Modified Organisms was passed. It delves into the role of peasant, indigenous, and non-governmental organizations as movements that have gone beyond resistance to the technological advance of the big agro-biotechnological corporations in two specific crops: maize and trans-genetic soybeans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colombia is currently one of the most promising countries with regard to its potential for agricultural development and for generating food supply for current and future human generations. This is owing to factors such as availability of land, water, topographical diversity, as well as political factors. Nevertheless, Colombia will reach this full potential if it adopts available technologies that can meet the current global challenges faced by the agriculture in the 21st century: among others, world population growth, increase in average life expectancy, high degree of malnutrition, climate change, wrong agricultural practices. Here is presented how modern biotechnology is an important ally as a wide range of technologies and innovative systems can be applied where they are most needed: for increasing cultivation productivity, resisting both biotic and abiotic factors, and ensuring food safety. In this study is showed evidence with regard to significant benefits of adopting biotechnological crops to contribute to food safety and how they are already being implemented in both developed and developing countries. Using modern technology, there are open opportunities for the country in search of circular bio-based economy, strengthen its food sovereignty and to serve as an agricultural breadbasket to Latin America and the World. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transgenic maize that expresses the Bt protein is one of the strategies most used for the control of Spodoptera frugiperda, key pests of this crop in America. With the objective of verifying the susceptibility of S. frugiperda; toxicity studies were conducted of the proteins Bt expressed in leaves of different events of maize released in Paraguay, 2B587hx™ (cry1F); VT triple PRO™ (Cry1A/Cry2Ab/Cry3Bb) and Formula TL™ (Cry1Ab). The rearing of S. frugiperda was conducted in the laboratory to obtain a uniform population under controlled conditions of temperature (25 ± 2 °C), relative humidity (60 ± 10%) and photoperiod of 14:10 h (L:D). Mortality was evaluated and in the case of survivors; the weight and length of the pupae, the fertility of the females, the longevity of the adults, the viability of eggs, and the duration of the different stages and the total cycle. The supply of larvae neonates in the leaves of maize of the event VT triple PRO™ produced 100% mortality; however, in the larvae fed with leaves of the events 2B587hx™ and Formula TL™; the mortality was 58% and 56%, respectively. The survivors to these treatments had a longer life cycle, fertility and reduced fertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Universitaria is the property of Universidad de Guanajuato/Acta Universitaria and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Agro Productividad is the property of Colegio de Postgraduados and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the introduction are discussed some of the ecological, agronomic, socioeconomic and cultural consequences of the commercial release of transgenic maize in Mexico. Subsequently, the current process of privatization and concentration in production and seed trade worldwide and particularly in Mexico is described. Then, the opportunities and alternatives available to the situation described previously are mentioned. Later, aspects of biotechnology patents in the international context and the Plant Breeders Rights are indicated followed by the analysis of the proposed reforms to the Federal Law on Plant Varieties in the country. The paper concludes with a general discussion and conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hacia las últimas décadas del siglo pasado, ciertas técnicas de ingeniería genética empezaron a aplicarse a la agricultura, dando origen a la biotecnología agrícola moderna. Esta ciencia se orientó hacia fines tan importantes como el combate a las plagas que azotan varios cultivos de gran importancia económica y a la tolerancia a herbicidas. Gracias a los avances de la ingeniería genética, el mundo está logrando grandes beneficios en la agricultura, y en consecuencia en la alimentación de la humanidad. Aunque los organismos genéticamente modificados (ogm) tienen apenas 18 años de ser sembrados, son ya la tecnología agrícola de más rápida adopción en la historia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Its climate makes the state of Jalisco an outstanding maize producer; it is a good producer of grain corn and, above all, seed. This gives the state's farmers and national seed producers an advantage, but also creates conflicts because the former are not getting a fair price for their product and they have high production costs, while the latter have to compete with multinational companies that have monopolized the market and are attempting to introduce genetically modified maize. This article analyzes the central function of seeds in maize production and Jalisco's seed industry in the face of transgenic corn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmers grow native and hybrid maize on ejido, private, or rented lands for their own consumption and to supply the regional market. Hybrids are fostered by Sustainable Modernization of Traditional Agriculture, the International Center for Improving Corn and Wheat, the Ministry to Foster Agricultural and Animal Husbandry, and the tortilla industry. Pests and weeds do not damage production; herbicides and insecticides represent the lowest costs. Transgenic species of maize do not solve the problems of fertility, drought, and frosts. To the contrary, they would affect the richness of the native species of maize valued by farmers. Few producers are familiar with the Law to Foster and Protect Maize, and almost no one has read the Law on Biosecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Entomología is the property of Universidad del Valle and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article reflects about the ethical issues generated in society by the production and use of transgenic or genetically modified food manufactured by biotechnology, such as: the commercial interests that guide this new technology, ecological risks, risks to human health, the possibility of introducing new plagues. Each country must regularize all aspects related to transgenic food in order to avoid risks and abuses by transnational companies and in order to protect vulnerable sectors of agriculture and livestock. Bioethical dialogue is proposed to balance both proponents, those who reject and those who support the production and use of genetically modified organisms for food, clarifying data with the help of science and promoting free information for an adequate environment for the possible development of this technology in the context of each country and community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world's population is exceeding 6 billion people and it's necessary in the coming years to increase food production by 50%. Among the limiting factors to agricultural production are insect pests. It is estimated that losses caused by different pests are ranging between 20% and 40%. Among the strategies that have been implemented to handle this problem is the use of transgenic plants resistant to insects, using genes derived from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt).Most of these genes are protected by patents and therefore access is restricted. It is necessary to find new ways and tools to enable access to these genes, for the solution of agricultural problems. It was designed and built through bioinformatics packages, a semi synthetic version of thecry1Acgene, codon optimized for the use of rice (Oryza sativa), and was performed in silico analysis of the characteristics of the translated protein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phaseolus genus, as well as other legumes, has proved recalcitrant plant regeneration in vitro and mainly to genetic transformation via Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Genetic transformation in this species is limited because of their genotype dependent, as well as being a process of low efficiency and poor reproducibility. There are evidences that several factors influence DNA integration and stable transformation of plants. This review aims to analyze the influence of different factors on the efficiency of genetic transformation via Agrobacterium tumefaciens in Phaseolus such as: bacterial strain, plasmid, temperature, lighting conditions, coculture time, bacterial concentration and selection marker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Biotecnología is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

En este trabajo se analiza la adopción del algodón genéticamente modificado (GM) por parte de pequeños productores del Chaco, Argentina. Se utiliza el marco conceptual de la configuración socio-técnica de la tecnología, en que se postula que existe un conjunto de factores que inciden de manera relevante en la forma en que funcionan las tecnologías. Desde este marco, se describen las condiciones en que los pequeños productores del Chaco adoptan el algodón GM y se señalan las diferencias existentes con los grandes productores, en quienes se centra la mayor parte de la literatura. A partir de metodologías cualitativas, se analizan las rupturas y continuidades ocurridas desde la introducción del algodón GM en las prácticas productivas que afectan a la rentabilidad de los pequeños productores. Se constata que las dificultades productivas que estos enfrentan no han variado esencialmente y, en algunos casos, se han profundizado. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The knowledge of the Bt toxin concentration within a transgenic plant is basic for the estimation of the performance of the insect pest aimed to be managed with this technology. In a commercial lot at the National Cereal Federation (FENALCE) in the municipality of Granada (Meta), Colombia, samples from plants of transgenic maize YieldGard® were taken to determine the average concentration of the Cry1Ab toxin. In the laboratory by means of the sandwich ELISA assay, the protein was quantified in vegetative and reproductive tissues with the kit "for Cry1Ab/Cry1Ac Qualiplate Envirologix." For this purpose, leaves, stem, ear, ear styles, husk, cob, and corn kernels were lyophilized. The analyses indicated that expression fluctuates between tissues from the same plant and between plants in the same plot. The average concentration of Cry1Ab was: 8.97 g/g fresh weight in leaves (V7), 8.96 in stems, 2.30 in male inflorescence (VT), 9.57 in unfertilized styles, 7.27 in fertilized styles (R1), 8.39 in cob (R3), 12.19 in husks, and 1.85 g/g fresh weight in grains (R3). Concentrations in seeds and leaves were similar to those obtained in the U.S.A. and Europe. This marked difference in the toxin expression makes Bt corn a plant susceptible to some pests, because there is no uniformity in the Cry1Ab concentration in the tissues consumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Como ha podido documentarse, el gobierno mexicano ha mantenido una política de promoción del libre comercio y de las importaciones de maíz, y ha alentado el avance de los cultivos transgénicos. En el TLCAN aceptó principios y condiciones que apoyan los intereses de Estados Unidos y Canadá […]. No dio ninguna respuesta al hallazgo de maíz nativo contaminado con transgenes a pesar de ser el país centro de origen y diversidad del cereal […]. Desoyó las demandas de científicos y de amplios sectores de la sociedad civil de México y muchos países, y favoreció en todo momento los intereses transnacionales […] la sociedad civil promueve actualmente una audiencia de Maíz, soberanía alimentaria y autonomía frente al Tribunal Permanente de los Pueblos, capítulo México. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of BIOAGRO is the property of Revista BIOAGRO and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

El artículo presenta un estudio sobre el efecto de espermidina sobre la transformación genética en especies de banana. Se utilizó la cepa Agrobacterium tumefaciens para la inoculación de cultivos, y se evaluó el efecto potenciador de la espermicida sobre los cultivos. Se esbozan mecanismos posibles de la acción de la espermidina, incluyendo la modulación de niveles de Agrobacterium.

El artículo presenta un estudio sobre la transformación genética de soya, y la variabilidad en el cultivo de soya. Se discute la selección de marcadores genéticas de soya, y se esbozan los logros en producir plantas transgénicas de soya.

Our culture associates progress with scientific development and particularly with technological development. In the Latin Ameri- can context, this association is not as definitive as it seems to be for the "developed" countries. When attempting to integrate the biotechnological-progress equation into the reality of life in Latin America, all sorts of conflicts emerge, especially ethical ones, such as transforming agricultural traditions with genetically modified seeds and using our people as objects of experimentation. There is no ethical justification for taking advantage of the difficulties suffered by the majority of the world's population, including Latin Americans, for the benefit of only a few. The proposal is to turn these communities into protagonists. They should not be recipients of a cultural tradition that often is foreign to them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The lack of mechanical mixing of stubble with mineral soil under no-tillage means that this management technique depends mainly on soil organisms to function properly, resembling natural ecosystems. Mites are one of the most abundant and diverse groups of soil mesofauna. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in mite taxocenosis produced by soybean monoculture under no-tillage with respect to the original natural grassland taxocenosis, in Typic Haplustolls of General Deheza basin, Córdoba. Changes in soil properties related to these organisms were also evaluated. The no-tillage system led to a decrease in mite abundance in litter and soil and changes in the dominance of different taxa: natural grasslands were dominated by Oribatida and managed sites were dominated by Prostigmata. In this sense the mesofauna of no-tillage sites are more similar to those of tilled land than to those of natural soils. It is suggested that the higher bulk density, the lower soil organic matter and moisture content of managed soils, the agrochemical load and the low return of soybean residues are the factors that best explain the differences in faunal communities. The changes observed in mite taxocenosis affect the litter decomposition process, resulting in a decrease in soil quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Papaya production acquires major economic importance all over the world every day. It is consumed as fresh fruit or processed to obtain other products in the pharmaceutical, cooking, and medical industries and in the brewing industry to obtain nonalcoholic drinks. Currently, Agricultural Science faces serious problems such as plant virus control, which form an important group of pathogenic organisms. To obtain resistance to the Papaya ringspot virus is an increasing interest area because main commercial varieties of papaya are susceptible to this disease. Genetic engineering has achieved important results aimed to solve this problem introducing new elements at the global strategic control. Our work summarizes the main strategies used to obtain resistance to Papaya ringspot virus during the last two decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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El artículo discurre sobre el desarrollo y la implementación de cultivos transgénicos en la agricultura de hoy. El autor comenta sobre las controversias alrededor del uso de cultivos transgénicos, incluyendo las afirmaciones que son antinaturales. También se consideran estudios realizados por la organización estadounidense National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NAS) que contradicen estos miedos.

Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Biotecnología is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Molecular farming is an evolving field in Cuba; therefore, establishing the guidelines guaranteeing the quality, safety and efficacy of biopharmaceutical products is a challenge for the National Regulatory Agency (Center for State Control on the Quality of Drugs; CECMED). The methodology to elaborate guidelines for this type of products was mainly based on the revision of the legal and regulatory international framework, the evaluation of the current and prospective developmental stage of the technology in Cuba and the comparative analysis among the manufacturing process steps of a biotechnological product obtained in traditional expression systems and that derived from transgenic plants. A first draft of the regulatory document was compared to guidance drafts issued by other regulatory agencies (such as FDA and EMEA) and extensively reviewed by CECMED specialists as well as by experts of the local biotech industry. As a result, a regulation project was elaborated, and its applicability tested while the assessment of an application for scientific advisory, related to product obtained by this technology. Finally, the regulation was approved, being applicable for products generated in genetically modified plants. It is also valid for edible vaccines and other compounds which do not constitute active pharmaceutical ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Se trata el debate sobre el uso de los organismos modificados genéticos (OMG) en la agricultura europea. Se nota que la Unión Europea autorizó áreas libres de cultivos transgénicos. Los cultivos transgénicos resultan en una productividad elevada a un coste reducido, según sus defensores. La soja transgénica MON89788 (también llamado Roundup Ready 2) no muestra efectos negativos ni en las personas ni en el medio ambiente, según un estudio de la European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

This article analyses the various postures that contemporary societies adopt when faced with the complex and the unknown. In particular, I examine why the risks associated with new transgenic crops may prompt, on the one hand, inaction, complacency and conformism or, on the other hand, activism, suspicion and disquiet. I argue that that the principal problem in the management of scientific uncertainty involves a cognitive and epistemological question about what we know and what we don't know, as well as an ethical and normative question about what we do and what we ought to do, about both the known and the unknown. In conclusion, I explore the essential tension between the dominant social position in favour of complete freedom to investigate, produce and commercialise, versus the emergent alternative social position which advocates control, security and social and environmental responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the debate about the introduction of transgenic maize crops in areas where local varieties of maize are grown by family farmers. It focuses on the production of maize in two Mexican states, Oaxaca and Sinaloa, comparing their agricultural and ethnic-cultural policies, describing attitudes toward native and transgenic seed varieties and considering the impact on seed variety, mechanization and production systems. The author concludes with a discussion of the politization of the issue of genetically modified organisms and its social impact.

The article presents the topics addresses in this issue including the debate over transgenic varieties of corn and their social impact, community participation in conservation policies in Oaxaca, Mexico and the challenges to citizen participation in environmental decision-making.