The cultivation of genetically modified crops has long been a contentious issue in the European Union. Now a group of biotech specialists and legal experts propose a mechanism to take the political edge out of the authorization process.
We discus legal status of plants obtained using NBT: whether they are to be treated as GMOs or not. The conclusion may have a negative impact on the development of research on them and their practical use. The problem of the application of provisions on GMOs in relation to the products of some of the NBT has been the subject of the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Case C-528/16 – this topic is analyzed in details.
The production of domestic protein for feed in Poland is insufficient. The import of feed raw materials, especially soybean, which is genetically modified (GM) is necessity. In 2016, Poland imported about 2 million tonnes of GM soybean. In Poland was introduced a ban for using and production of GM feed (Law – animal feed from 2006). This ban has already been suspended few times, mainly due to the fact, that the complete replacement of imported GM soybean meal with other components was impossible. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development appointed “Team for alternative sources of protein”, responsible for finding solutions that will impact on reducing imports and will increase the share of domestic sources of protein in animal feed. To achieve this aim research are needed to indicate plants and their possibilities for using. The aim of the article is to analyse selected feed components such as: soybean and rapeseed meal, sunflower meal and oilcakes. This analysis concerns the area of cultivation of soybean, rapeseed and sunflower, purchase costs of meals and oilcakes, properties of these components and foreign trade in Poland.
”Bio” technologies are significant for the future prospects and for knowledge based bioeconomy in general. In the article we examine two areas of problems – one connected to the issue of use of genetic resources and traditional knowledge and another – connected to new plant breeding techniques. We examine whether the law is up to date with the developments in the area of biotechnology and if there is a need for legislative changes in these areas. As it turns out, the necessary legislation may be significantly behind the progress of bio-science. Also, we present potential paths for solving such problems.
Incomplete oxygen reduction gives rise to reactive oxygen species (ROS). For a long time they have been considered unwelcome companions of aerobic metabolism. Organisms using oxygen developed several systems of ROS scavenging with enzymatic and non enzymatic antioxidants, which allow them control the cellular level of oxygen derived from free radicals. It is well established nowadays that ROS are not necessarily negative byproducts, but they also play an important role in cellular mechanisms. They are involved in many regular cellular processes in all aerobic organisms. When the antioxidant system is overcome and the balance between ROS production and scavenging is disrupted, oxidative stress occurs. It has been reported that oxidative stress may be linked to some human diseases and is also involved in biotic and abiotic stress response in plants.