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Thursday, March 25, 2004
UP scientists to look into Bt corn problem
By Romer S. Sarmiento
SCIENTISTS from the University of the Philippines are due to arrive here Friday to hold a series of public discussions against the controversial findings earlier made by a Norwegian scientist who said traces of Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) toxin were found on the blood samples of residents living near a Bt corn field in South Cotabato.
Dr. Terje Traavik, scientific director of the Norwegian Institute of Gene Ecology, earlier stirred the international scientific community when he confirmed that at least 38 individuals have been tested positive for Bt toxin.
Dione Christian Baracol, project management assistant for the SEARCA Biotechnology Information Center, confirmed in a telephone interview Tuesday the arrival here of UP medical experts headed by Dr. Nina Gloriani Barzaga, a professor of medical microbiology and microbial immunology from the UP-Manila College of Public Health.
"Dr. Barzaga and two other noted medical experts from the Philippine General Hospital would conduct the public forum as well in the town of Polomolok and in Koronadal City," said the Laguna-based Baracol.
Polomolok is the town in South Cotabato province where the subjects of Traavik study are residing, while Koronadal is the hotbed of anti-Bt corn movement in Central Mindanao headed by the local Catholic Church.
"They would primarily allay the fear of the public in those areas that was apparently stirred as a result of the claims of Traavik," Baracol stressed.
Barzaga, who is also the director of the Institute of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology-National Institute of Health Philippines and research director of the Biotechnology Coalition of the Philippines, earlier assailed Traavik for causing "undue public panic" when he disclosed to the media the results of his study.
"Traavik needs to show pertinent scientific data that establish his claims, before making press releases and unduly causing panic to the public," she said in a statement.
Barzaga stressed that Traavik's statement that "blood samples from [several] people in Southern Philippines carried increased levels of three different target antibodies showing evidence of an immune reaction to the Bt toxin built into the maize gene to combat pests" needs to be evaluated based on the basic principles of immunology and immunobiology.
"It is also important for Traavik to indicate what types of tests were performed, and in which laboratories these tests were performed. There are accepted standardized and validated procedures used in any allergenicity testing," she said.
Traavik told journalists here March 4 that he conducted the test on the blood samples at his laboratory at the University in Tromso in Norway, two months after the residents complained of several symptoms like headache, vomiting, dizziness and allergies.
The Norwegian scientist, however, admitted that while the traces of Bt toxin were conclusively discovered on the blood samples, it could still not be fully ascertained that Bt corn caused the toxic footprints.
Barzaga challenged Traavik to provide the medical world with the scientific data to prove his claims, as well as for the latter to fully disclose the details or methods of his study.
Gloria Sabit, an advocacy officer for the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Marbel based in Koronadal City, however came to the defense of Traavik. The SAC has been at the forefront of anti-Bt corn campaign in the locality.
Sabit said that those favoring Bt corn and other genetically altered crops should be the one who must come up with an overwhelming study that these plants are safe for humans and the environment.
"The burden of proof should not be on the side of the critics but on the proponents of the Bt corn," she said in an interview.
(March 25, 2004 issue)
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