Genome edited animals: Learning from GM crops?

Genome editing of livestock is poised to become commercial reality, yet questions remain as to appropriate regulation, potential impact on the industry sector and public acceptability of products. This paper looks at how genome editing of livestock has attempted to learn some of the lessons from commercialisation of GM crops, and takes a systemic approach to explore some of the complexity and ambiguity in incorporating genome edited animals in a food production system. Current applications of genome editing are considered, viewed from the perspective of past technological applications. The question of what is genome editing, and can it be considered natural is examined. The implications of regulation on development of different sectors of livestock production systems are studied, with a particular focus on the veterinary sector. From an EU perspective, regulation of genome edited animals, although not necessarily the same as for GM crops, is advocated from a number of different perspectives. This paper aims to open up new avenues of research on genome edited animals, extending from the current primary focus on science and regulation, to engage with a wider-range of food system actors.     

Will genomic selection be a practical method for plant breeding?

Background

Genomic selection or genome-wide selection (GS) has been highlighted as a new approach for marker-assisted selection (MAS) in recent years. GS is a form of MAS that selects favourable individuals based on genomic estimated breeding values. Previous studies have suggested the utility of GS, especially for capturing small-effect quantitative trait loci, but GS has not become a popular methodology in the field of plant breeding, possibly because there is insufficient information available on GS for practical use.

Scope

In this review, GS is discussed from a practical breeding viewpoint. Statistical approaches employed in GS are briefly described, before the recent progress in GS studies is surveyed. GS practices in plant breeding are then reviewed before future prospects are discussed.

Conclusions

Statistical concepts used in GS are discussed with genetic models and variance decomposition, heritability, breeding value and linear model. Recent progress in GS studies is reviewed with a focus on empirical studies. For the practice of GS in plant breeding, several specific points are discussed including linkage disequilibrium, feature of populations and genotyped markers and breeding scheme. Currently, GS is not perfect, but it is a potent, attractive and valuable approach for plant breeding. This method will be integrated into many practical breeding programmes in the near future with further advances and the maturing of its theory.Key words: Genomic selection, plant breeding, marker assisted selection, genetic model, linkage disequilibrium     

Equity or equality? Moral judgments follow the money

Previous research emphasizes people''s dispositions as a source of differences in moral views. We investigate another source of moral disagreement, self-interest. In three experiments, participants played a simple economic game in which one player divides money with a partner according to the principle of equality (same payoffs) or the principle of equity (payoffs proportional to effort expended). We find, first, that people''s moral judgment of an allocation rule depends on their role in the game. People not only prefer the rule that most benefits them but also judge it to be more fair and moral. Second, we find that participants'' views about equality and equity change in a matter of minutes as they learn where their interests lie. Finally, we find limits to self-interest: when the justification for equity is removed, participants no longer show strategic advocacy of the unequal division. We discuss implications for understanding moral debate and disagreement.     

Can animals recall the past and plan for the future?

According to the 'mental time travel hypothesis' animals, unlike humans, cannot mentally travel backwards in time to recollect specific past events (episodic memory) or forwards to anticipate future needs (future planning). Until recently, there was little evidence in animals for either ability. Experiments on memory in food-caching birds, however, question this assumption by showing that western scrub-jays form integrated, flexible, trial-unique memories of what they hid, where and when. Moreover, these birds can adjust their caching behaviour in anticipation of future needs. We suggest that some animals have elements of both episodic-like memory and future planning.     

Are plant communities on the Canary Islands resistant to plant invasion?

Oceanic islands are renowned for their unique flora and high levels of endemism. Native island plants, however, are imperilled by non-native species that can become invasive by outcompeting natives. The threat of native island assemblages generally increases with isolation and the number of endemics featured, but also with human-associated disturbance and land use. Based on this, the Canary Island native plant systems should be highly threatened by invasives, similar to other oceanic islands globally. However, Canarian native plant systems are only weakly infiltrated and are rarely directly threatened by invasive plants. Further, highly disturbed areas, usually among the first colonized by invasives on islands, are recolonized here by natives. Based on this, we postulate four hypotheses (climatic filter, well-preservation status, human legacy and permanent colonization) for explaining this unusual behaviour of plant systems on the Canary Islands, providing an opportunity to understand the drivers and processes behind invasion into plant communities on islands.     

The current state of GMO governance: Are we ready for GM animals?

Given the history of GMO conflict and debate, the GM animal future is dependent on the response of the regulatory landscape and its associated range of interest groups at national, regional and international levels. Focusing on the EU and the USA, this article examines the likely form of that multi-level response, the increased role of cultural values, the contribution of new and existing interest groups and the consequent implications for the commercialization of both green and red GM animal biotechnology.     

Comparative plant development: the time of the leaf?

A key problem in developmental biology is understanding the origin of morphological innovations. Comparative studies in plants with different leaf morphologies indicate that the developmental pathway defined by KNOTTED1-type homeodomain proteins could be involved in generating different leaf forms. The differential expression of regulatory proteins has emerged as an important factor in driving morphological innovations in the plant kingdom--an idea that is well supported by quantitative trait locus analyses.     

NSTEMI treatment: should we always follow the guidelines?

Netherlands Heart Journal -