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What are farmers really planting? Measuring the presence and effectiveness of Bt cotton in Pakistan.

ABSTRACT: Genetically modified, insect-resistant Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton is cultivated extensively in Pakistan. Past studies, however, have raised concerns about the prevalence of Bt cotton varieties possessing weak or nonperforming insect-resistance traits conferred by the cry gene. We examine this issue using data drawn from a representative sample of cotton-growing households that were surveyed in six agroclimatic zones spanning 28 districts in Pakistan in 2013, as well as measurements of Cry protein levels in cotton tissue samples collected from the sampled households' main fields. The resultant dataset combines information from 593 sampled households with corresponding plant tissue diagnostics from 70 days after sowing, as well as information from 589 sampled households with corresponding diagnostics from 120 days after sowing. Our analysis indicates that 11 percent of farmers believed they were cultivating Bt cotton when, in fact, the Cry toxin was not present in the tested tissue at 70 days after sowing (i.e., a Type I error). The analysis further indicates that 5 percent of farmers believed they were cultivating non-Bt cotton when, in fact, the Cry toxin was present in the tested tissue (i.e., a Type II error). In addition, 17 percent of all sampled farmers were uncertain whether or not they were cultivating Bt cotton. Overall, 33 percent of farmers either did not know or were mistaken in their beliefs about the presence of the cry gene in the cotton they cultivated. Results also indicate that toxic protein levels in the plant tissue samples occurred below threshold levels for lethality in a significant percentage of cases, although these measurements may also be affected by factors related to tissue sample collection, handling, storage, and testing procedures. Nonetheless, results strongly suggest wide variability both in farmers' beliefs and in gene expression. Such variability has implications for policy and regulation in Pakistan's transgenic cotton seed market.

SUBMITTER: Spielman DJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5417514 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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What are farmers really planting? Measuring the presence and effectiveness of Bt cotton in Pakistan.

Spielman David J DJ Zaidi Fatima F Zambrano Patricia P Khan Asif Ali AA Ali Shaukat S Cheema H Masooma Naseer HMN Nazli Hina H Khan Rao Sohail Ahmad RSA Iqbal Arshad A Zia Muhammad Amir MA Ali Ghulam Muhammad GM

PloS one 20170504 5

Genetically modified, insect-resistant Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton is cultivated extensively in Pakistan. Past studies, however, have raised concerns about the prevalence of Bt cotton varieties possessing weak or nonperforming insect-resistance traits conferred by the cry gene. We examine this issue using data drawn from a representative sample of cotton-growing households that were surveyed in six agroclimatic zones spanning 28 districts in Pakistan in 2013, as well as measurements of Cr ...[more]

PMID: 28472094

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Project description:Drought stress impacts cotton plant growth and productivity across countries. Plants can initiate morphological, cellular, and proteomic changes to adapt to unfavorable conditions. However, our knowledge of how cotton plants respond to drought stress at the proteome level is limited. Herein, we elucidated the molecular coordination underlining the drought tolerance of two inbred cotton varieties, Bacillus thuringiensis-cotton [Bt-cotton + Cry1 Ac gene and Cry 2 Ab gene; NCS BG II BT (BTCS/BTDS)] and Hybrid cotton variety [Non-Bt-cotton; (HCS/HDS)]. Our morphological observations and biochemical experiments showed a different tolerance level between two inbred lines to drought stress. Our proteomic analysis using 2D-DIGE revealed that the changes among them were not obviously in respect to their controls apart from under drought stress, illustrating the differential expression of 509 and 337 proteins in BTDS and HDS compared to their controls. Among these, we identified eight sets of differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) and characterized them using MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry. Furthermore, the quantitative real-time PCR analysis was carried out with the identified drought-related proteins and confirmed differential expressions. In silico analysis of DEPs using Cytoscape network finds ATPB, NAT9, ERD, LEA, and EMB2001 to be functionally correlative to various drought-responsive genes LEA, AP2/ERF, WRKY, and NAC. These proteins play a vital role in transcriptomic regulation under stress conditions. The higher drought response in Bt cotton (BTCS/BTDS) attributed to the overexpression of photosynthetic proteins enhanced lipid metabolism, increased cellular detoxification and activation chaperones, and reduced synthesis of unwanted proteins. Thus, the Bt variety had enhanced photosynthesis, elevated water retention potential, balanced leaf stomata ultrastructure, and substantially increased antioxidant activity than the Non-Bt cotton. Our results may aid breeders and provide further insights into developing new drought-tolerant and high-yielding cotton hybrid varieties.

Dataset Information

What are farmers really planting? Measuring the presence and effectiveness of Bt cotton in Pakistan.

Publications

What are farmers really planting? Measuring the presence and effectiveness of Bt cotton in Pakistan.

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