Beijing, China
March 2, 2009
by Peng Kuang, SciDev.Net
Scientists say they have created
genetically modified rice that can protect poultry against bird
flu.
The rice is modified using a gene from the Chinese plant Yuzhu,
which is used in traditional medicine.
The scientists, from the
Chinese University of Hong Kong, have already shown that a
protein found in Yuzhu is a strong inhibitor of the bird flu
virus H5N1, which has killed 248 people since 2003, according to
the WHO.
Last month (16 January) Samuel Sun Sai-ming, a plant scientist
and leader of the team, announced that his group had
successfully introduced the gene into the rice — and that the
modified rice also inhibits H5N1.
To test the effect further, they plan to compare the antiviral
powers of the GM rice that has produced the protein with protein
isolated directly from Yuzhu.
After that, the next step is to conduct animal testing to see
whether the protein can provide resistance to H5N1 infection.
Ultimately they hope that birds that are fed the rice could be
protected from the virus without the need for vaccination.
"If the level of the introduced anti-H5N1 Yuzhu protein present
in the transgenic rice is high enough, the antiviral effects of
the 'modified rice' may be expected to be significant," Sun told
SciDev.Net.
But the research faces several obstacles, one of which is
safety. The toxicity of both the bird flu virus and the newly
created rice need to be considered, he said.
"We do not have safety data for this genetically modified rice,"
says Paul Chan, a microbiologist and member of the team. |
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