事实上,植物只是在受伤状态下“被动”接受了细菌的侵袭并形成了肿瘤,但他们并没有放弃抵抗,相反,他们还对冠瘿瘤采取了多种监视手段,如转录后基因沉默(植物在外源基因侵入时,会发展出一种策略:产生si RNA和 mi RNA来降解外源基因转录后的形成的RNA);超敏反应(植物在受到细菌感染时,会在受感染的部位产生局部的细胞死亡,病菌因此无法扩散)等等。其中,在转基因植物兴起之初,植物“转录后基因沉默”的机制就给外源基因的表达造成了极大的麻烦,由此可见,这种转基因是多么的不“自然”,多么
举例来说,在用转基因治疗X染色体连锁重度联合免疫缺陷病(X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency)的病人时,科学家将病人自身缺乏的基因转入他们的DNA中,其结果是,对其症状有效,但其中三个男孩却引发了白血病。据分析,是由于转入的增强子刺激了一个附近的“启动子”,结果打开和驱动了一个产生生长调节子(LMO2)的基因,使其表达程度高了一千倍,致使T细胞生长失控而导致了白血病【1】。
【3】 A. Pusztai and S. Bardocz, “GMO in animal nutrition: potential benefits and risks,” Chapter 17, Biology of Nutrition in Growing Animals, R.Mosenthin, J.Zentek and T. Zebrowska (Eds.) Elsevier, October 2005
【4】 A. Kohli, S. Griffiths, N. Palacios, R.M. Twyman, P. Vain, D.A. Laurie, and P. Christou, “Molecular characterization of transforming plasmid rearrangements in transgenic rice reveals a recombination hotspot in the CaMV 35S promoter and confirms the predominance of microhomology mediated recombination,” Plant J 17 (1999): 591-601
【5】 S. P. Kumpatla and T.C. Hall, “Organizational complexity of a rice transgenic locus susceptible to methylation-based silencing. IUBMB Life 48 (1999): 459-467
【6】 C. Collonier, G. Berthier, F. Boyer, M.N. Duplan, S. Fernandez, N. Kebdani, A. Kobilinsky, M. Romanuk, Y. Bertheau, “Characterization of commercial GMO inserts: a source of useful material to study genome fluidity,” poster courtesy of Pr. Gilles-Eric Seralini, President du Conseil Scientifique du CRII-GEN, www.crii-gen.org
【7】 Mae-Wan Ho, “Transgenic Lines Proven Unstable,” Institute for Science in Society, http://www.isis.org.uk/TLPU.php; For further discussion, see Ho et al, “CaMV 35S promoter fragmentation hotspot confirmed, and it is active in animals,” Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease 2000:13, http://www.i-
sis.org.uk/mehd3.php
【8】 Joseph Cummins, “Eating Cauliflower Mosaic Virus infected vegetables does not prove that that Cauliflower Mosaic Virus Promoter in genetically modified crops is safe,” ISIS Press Release, February 18, 2001, http://www.i-sis.org.uk/eatingcamv-pr.php
【9】 O. P. Rekvig, et al, “Antibodies to eukaryotic, including autologous, native DNA are produced during BK virus infection, but not after immunization with non-infectious BK DNA,” Scand. J. Immunol. 36(1992): 487-95
【10】 Terje Traavik presented findings by the Norwegian Institute for Gene Ecology to delegates of the UN Cartagena Protocol for Biosafety, in advance of their February 2004 meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. See Jeffrey M. Smith, “GM Food Promoter Transfers to Rat Cells,” Press release and backgrounder, Feb 24, 2004, http://www.seedsofdeception.com/Public/AboutGeneticallyModifiedFoods/
GMFoodPromoterTransferstoRatCells/index.cfm
【11】Windels P, et al. “Characterisation of the Roundup Ready soybean insert,”Eur.Food Res. Technol. 213 (2001):107-112
【12】 Rang A, et al, “Detection of RNA variants transcribed from the transgene in Roundup Ready soybean” Eur Food Res Technol (2005) 220:438–443
【13】Windels P, et al. “Characterisation of the Roundup Ready soybean insert.” Eur Food Res Technol (2001) 213:107–112
【14】 Jack Heinemann et al, Submission on Application A549 Food Derived from High Lysine Corn LY038
【15】 G. Meister and T. Tuschl, “Mechanisms of gene silencing by double-stranded RNA,” Nature 431(2004): 343-349; and C. Mello, C.C. and D. Conte, Jr., “Revealing the world of RNA interference,” Nature 432 (2004): 338-342
【16】Lin Zhang, Chen-Yu Zhang et.al., Exogenous plant MIR168a specifically targets mammalian LDLRAP1: evidence of cross-kingdom regulation by microRNA Cell Research , (20 September 2011) | doi:10.1038/cr.2011.158