California's Proposed GE Pharm Rice Could Poison Unsuspecting Consumers

April 2, 2004
Human lysozyme and lactoferrin therapeutic proteins also have been
implicated in pathological condition

By Prof. Joe Cummins
e-mail; jcummins@uwo.ca

Recently crop plants modified with the therapeutic proteins lysozyme and/or
lactoferrin have been tested in the field. Rice modified with lysozyme and
lactoferrin has been put forward for commercial production(1). Lysozyme
protects us from the danger of bacterial infection. It is an enzyme that
attacks the protective cell walls of bacteria. Bacteria build a tough skin
ofcarbohydrate chains, interlocked by short peptide strands, that braces
their delicate membrane against the cell's high osmotic pressure. Lysozyme
breaks these carbohydrate chains, destroying the structural integrity of the
cell wall. The bacteria burst under their own internal osmotic pressure.

Lysozyme is present in bacteria and animals alike, birds egg lysozyme is a
powerful food allergen but human lysozyme is less likely to cause allergy.
Lactoferrin is a
protein that participates in regulation of immune functions and controls
pathogens by binding iron required for bacterial growth.Both lysozyme and
lactoferrin are present in mother¹s milk and both are used to treat
infections.

In spite of their value in controlling infection there are pathological
conditions associated with the proteins are genetic variants of the
proteins.

These pathological associations seem to have been overlooked by the
promoters
of the biopharmaceutical applications of proteins. However, the
pathological
side effects should have been considered because food crops may become
polluted
with the genes for the proteins and the proteins. The references below may
provide useful information for those questioning the production of the
proteins in food crops.

Lysozyme provides effective contol of many infections but the protein may
as
well, contribute to the pathology of pulmonary emphysema by binding to
elastic
fibers which undergo breakdown in the disease (2). Hereditary systemic
amyloidosis is caused by mutant forms of cell proteins deposited as amyloid
fibrils, the mutant cell proteins include lysozyme or apolipoprotein or
fibrinogen (3). The lysozyme related disease was provoked by a single
mutation
of tryptophane to arginine. The disease is inherited as dominant gene and
frequently leads to death at mid-life (4). A lactoferin mutant has been
implicated as a cause of amyloidosis accompanied by trichiasis (a common
vision
threatening condition of the eylid ). The lactoferrin mutant resulted from a
single change from glutamic to aspartic acid near the end of the protein
molecule (5).Lactoferrin has also been found to be implicated in forms of
autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus erythematosis and rheumatoid
arthritis (6) or in rheumatoid arthritis associated with vaculitis
(inflammation of blood vessels) (7).

Production of human lysozyme and lactiferrin in food crops such as rice,
barley or maize has been promoted as if the products purely beneficial
without harmful side-effects. However, there is evidence that moth normal
and
mutant forms of the proteins are associated with serious detrimental human
diseases. In particular the synthetic forms of the human genes used in crop
modification are modified both in codons and frequently amino acids to
enhance
production of the proteins in plants and these alterations are seldom
thoroughly tested. Mutations of the human genes in the plants are not
normally
identified unless they eliminate production of the protein.

There seems to be
a culture that puts optimism ahead of experiment and distains labeling of
products, crop production or field tests so that deleterious side effects of
the crops or their products cannot be identified.

Why is the evidence of harmful side effects and dangerous mutant forms
presented
at the safety evaluation of field tests and production sites? The answer
seems to be that both proponents and regulators do not wish to alarm the
public. Indeed, if and when the matter is brought up regulators and
proponents
will unleash teams of vicious lawyers whose job is to shift the burden of
proof
to those who mention harmful or dangerous side effects .

Nevertheless, if and
when the dangerous tests or crop productions are undertaken people who are
effected should begin to notice amyloidosis or autoimmune diseases
including
lupus and arthritis. The main geographical areas of concern are California
where biopharmaceutical rice is being ³tested² on a large scale and in
Washington state where large plots of biopharmaceutical barley is being
³tested².

References
1. Cummins,J. ³Rice with human genes: pharming in California² 2003
1-4pp
http://www.indsp.org/
2. CANTOR,J.,SHTEYNGART,B., CERRETA,J. AND TURINO,G. ³The Effect of
Lysozyme on
Elastase-Mediated Injury² 2002 Exp Biol Med 227:108­13
3. Hawkins,P. ³Hereditary systemic amyloidosis with renal
involvement²2003 J.
Nephrol. 16,443-8
4. VALLELX,S.,DRUNAT,S.,PHILIT,J.,
ADOUE,D.,PIETTE,J.,DROZ,D.,MACGREGOR,B.,CANET,D., DELPECH,M. and GRATEAU,G.²
Hereditary renal amyloidosis caused by a new variant lysozyme W64R in a
French
family² 2002 Kidney International 61,907-12
5. Ando,Y. ³Analyses of pathogenesis and therapeutic approaches for
hereditary
amyloidosis² 2003 Rinsho Byori 51,530-5
6. Nassberger L, Hultquist R and Sturfelt G. ³Occurrence of
anti-lactoferrin
antibodies in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus,
hydralazine-induced
lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis.² 1994 Scand J Rheumatol. 23,206-10
7. Coremans I, Hagen E, Daha M, van der Woude F, van der Voort E,
Kleijburgvan
der Keur C, Breedveld F. ³Antilactoferrin antibodies in patients with
rheumatoid arthritis are associated with vasculitis.² 1992 Arthritis Rheum.
35,1466-75