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"This study was just
routine," said Russian biologist Alexey V. Surov, in what could end up as
the understatement of this century. Surov and his colleagues set out to
discover if Monsanto's genetically modified (GM) soy, grown on 91% of US
soybean fields, leads to problems in growth or reproduction. What he discovered
may uproot a multi-billion dollar industry.
After
feeding hamsters for two years over three generations, those on the GM diet,
and especially the group on the maximum GM soy diet, showed devastating
results. By the third generation, most GM soy-fed hamsters lost the ability to
have babies. They also suffered slower growth, and a high mortality rate among
the pups.
And if this isn't shocking enough, some in the third generation
even had hair growing inside their mouths--a phenomenon rarely seen, but
apparently more prevalent among hamsters eating GM soy.
The study, jointly conducted by Surov's Institute of Ecology and
Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the National Association for
Gene Security, is expected to be published in three months (July 2010)--so the
technical details will have to wait. But Surov sketched out the basic set up
for me in an email.
He used
Campbell hamsters, with a fast reproduction rate, divided into 4 groups. All
were fed a normal diet, but one was without any soy, another had non-GM soy, a third
used GM soy, and a fourth contained higher amounts of GM soy. They used 5 pairs
of hamsters per group, each of which produced 7-8 litters, totally 140 animals.
"Originally,
everything went smoothly. However, we noticed quite a serious effect when we
selected new pairs from their cubs and continued to feed them as before. These
pairs' growth rate was slower and reached their sexual maturity slowly."
He selected
new pairs from each group, which generated another 39 litters. There were 52
pups born to the control group and 78 to the non-GM soy group. In the GM soy
group, however, only 40 pups were born. And of these, 25% died. This was a
fivefold higher death rate than the 5% seen among the controls. Of the hamsters
that ate high GM soy content, only a single female
hamster gave birth. She had 16 pups; about 20% died.
Surov said "The low numbers in F2 [third generation] showed
that many animals were sterile."
The published paper will also include measurements of organ size
for the third generation animals, including testes, spleen, uterus, etc. And if
the team can raise sufficient funds, they will also analyze hormone levels in
collected blood samples.
Hair Growing in the Mouth
Earlier this
year, Surov co-authored a paper in Doklady Biological Sciences showing that in rare instances, hair
grows inside recessed pouches in the mouths of hamsters.
"Some of these pouches contained single hairs; others, thick
bundles of colorless or pigmented hairs reaching as high as the chewing surface
of the teeth. Sometimes, the tooth row was surrounded with a regular brush of
hair bundles on both sides. The hairs grew vertically and had sharp ends, often
covered with lumps of a mucous."
(The photos
of these hair bundles are truly disgusting. Trust me, or look
for yourself.)
At the conclusion of the study, the authors surmise that such an
astounding defect may be due to the diet of hamsters raised in the laboratory.
They write, "This pathology may be exacerbated by elements of the food
that are absent in natural food, such as genetically modified (GM) ingredients
(GM soybean or maize meal) or contaminants (pesticides, mycotoxins, heavy
metals, etc.)." Indeed, the number of hairy mouthed hamsters was much
higher among the third generation of GM soy fed animals than anywhere Surov had
seen before.
Preliminary, but Ominous
Surov warns against jumping to early conclusions. He said,
"It is quite possible that the GMO does not cause these effects by
itself." Surov wants to make the analysis of the feed components a
priority, to discover just what is causing the effect and how.
In addition to the GMOs, it could be contaminants, he said, or
higher herbicide residues, such as Roundup. There is in fact much higher levels
of Roundup on these beans; they're called "Roundup Ready." Bacterial
genes are forced into their DNA so that the plants can tolerate Monsanto's
Roundup herbicide. Therefore, GM soy always carries the double threat of higher
herbicide content, couple with any side effects of genetic engineering.
Years of Reproductive Disorders
from GMO-Feed
Surov's
hamsters are just the latest animals to suffer from reproductive disorders
after consuming GMOs. In 2005, Irina Ermakova, also with the Russian National
Academy of Sciences, reported that more than half the babiesfrom mother rats fed GM soy died within
three weeks. This was also five times higher than the 10% death rate of the
non-GMO soy group. The babies in the GM group were also smaller (see
photo) and could not reproduce.
In a telling
coincidence, after Ermakova's feeding trials, her laboratory started feeding allthe
rats in the facility a commercial rat chow using GM soy. Within two months, the
infant mortality facility-wide reached 55%.
An Austrian
government study published in November 2008 showed that the more GM corn was
fed to mice, the fewer the babies they had(PDF), and the smaller the babies were.
Central Iowa Farmer Jerry Rosman also had trouble with pigs and
cows becoming sterile. Some of his pigs even had false pregnancies or gave
birth to bags of water. After months of investigations and testing, he finally
traced the problem to GM corn feed. Every time a newspaper, magazine, or TV
show reported Jerry's problems, he would receive calls from more farmers
complaining of livestock sterility on their farm, linked to GM corn.
Researchers
at Baylor College of Medicine accidentally discovered that rats raised on
corncob bedding "neither breed nor exhibitreproductive behavior." Tests on the corn material revealed two
compounds that stopped the sexual cycle in females "at concentrations
approximately two-hundredfold lower than classical phytoestrogens." One
compound also curtailed male sexual behavior and both substances contributed to
the growth of breast and prostate cancer cell cultures. Researchers found that
the amount of the substances variedwith GM corn varieties. The crushed corncob used at Baylor was
likely shipped from central Iowa, near the farm of Jerry Rosman and others
complaining of sterile livestock.
In Haryana, India, a team of investigating veterinarians report
that buffalo consuming GM cottonseed suffer from infertility, as well as
frequent abortions, premature deliveries, and prolapsed uteruses. Many adult
and young buffalo have also died mysteriously.
Denial, Attack and Canceled
Follow-up
Scientists who discover adverse findings from GMOs are regularly
attacked, ridiculed, denied funding, and even fired. When Ermakova reported the
high infant mortality among GM soy fed offspring, for example, she appealed to
the scientific community to repeat and verify her preliminary results. She also
sought additional funds to analyze preserved organs. Instead, she was attacked
and vilified. Samples were stolen from her lab, papers were burnt on her desk,
and she said that her boss, under pressure from his boss, told her to stop
doing any more GMO research. No one has yet repeated Ermakova's simple,
inexpensive studies.
In an attempt to offer her sympathy, one of her colleagues
suggested that maybe the GM soy will solve the over population problem!
Surov reports that so far, he has not been under any pressure.
Opting Out of the Massive GMO
Feeding Experiment
Without detailed tests, no one can pinpoint exactly what is
causing the reproductive travesties in Russian hamsters and rats, Italian and
Austrian mice, and livestock in India and America. And we can only speculate
about the relationship between the introduction of genetically modified foods
in 1996, and the corresponding upsurge in low birth weight babies, infertility,
and other problems among the US population. But many scientists, physicians,
and concerned citizens don't think that the public should remain the lab
animals for the biotech industry's massive uncontrolled experiment.
Alexey Surov says, "We have no right to use GMOs until we
understand the possible adverse effects, not only to ourselves but to future
generations as well. We definitely need fully detailed studies to clarify this.
Any type of contamination has to be tested before we consume it, and GMO is
just one of them."
