Comparative analysis of the proteomic and nutritional composition of transgenic rice seeds with Cry1ab/ac genes and their non-transgenic counterparts

Abstract

Nutritional assessment of transgenic crops used for human food and animal feed is an important component of safety evaluations. Profiling techniques, such as proteomics, are currently used as complementary analytical tools to detect the unintended effects of transgenic. We analyzed the proteomic profiles and nutritional composition of transgenic rice seeds containing the Cry1Ab/Ac protein to assess the safety of these transgenic seeds. We focused primarily on the effects of genetic modification and growth environment. By comparing proteomic profiles, we found that 21 proteins were up- or down-regulated as a consequence of environmental influence (WT01 vs. WT02). Similarly, 20 to 22 protein levels were differentially modulated in transgenic rice seeds in comparison to their non-transgenic counterparts (T01 vs. WT01; T02 vs. WT02). These latter changes may be due to the influence of growth environment and the insertion of a single gene into the rice genome. Based on the nutrient composition analysis (proximates, amino acids, fatty acids, minerals, vitamins and anti-nutritive components), we conclude that the nutritional quality of the rice from the transgenic lines was equivalent to that of its non-transgenic counterparts and that the effect of growth environment on the rice was no less than that of the single gene insertion.