Comparative assessment of endogenous lipid transfer protein (LTP) level in genetically modified maize for its
Eric Ma1, Saurabh Joshi1, Ivan Birukou1
1Seeds Product Safety, Syngenta Seeds, Durham, NC, USA.
Abstract:
Allergenicity risk has been one of the safety concerns for genetically modified (GM) crops that are generated using modern biotechnologies. When there is the presence of endogenous allergens in a host crop, one question is often raised if genetic modification could increase their allergenicity risk. In this study, lipid transfer protein (LTP), the major endogenous allergen in maize, was measured and compared between various GM maize with their non-GM control as well as non-GM, commercial maize varieties. The results showed LTP levels have no meaningful difference in GM maize, and the LTP levels observed in GM maize were well encompassed within the potential natural variation range from non-GM maize varieties. Therefore, such endogenous LTP quantitation comparison in GM and non-GM control maize does not bring valuable information to the safety assessment of GM maize.
