BT BRINJAL

GROUP 10
PRESENTED BY:
DURGALAKSHMI B.
MADHUMITHAA N.
RINI DEBNATH
SUDHA K.
 BT BRINJAL
What is Bt Brinjal ?
•Bt Brinjal is a transgenic brinjal created out of inserting a gene [Cry
1Ac] from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis into Brinjal.
•This is said to give the Brinjal plant resistance against lepidopteran
insects like the Brinjal Fruit and Shoot Borer (Leucinodes orbonalis) and
Fruit Borer (Helicoverpa armigera).
•It is reported that upon ingestion of the Bt toxin by the insect, there
would be disruption of digestive processes, ultimately resulting in the
death of the insect.
 WHAT IS BT BRINJAL?
• This is a genetically modified strain of the non-GM Brinjal created by
India's top seeds company Mahyco (Maharashtra Hybrid Seed
Company) in collaboration with American multinational Monsanto.
• It stakes a claim to improve the yields many fold and also help the
agricultural sector.
• The mass farmer suicides over the failure of the  BT cotton crop many
states have been against the use and production of this Brinjal.
• But the Centre was still adamant on going ahead with manufacture,
as it would accelerate yield and will shorten growth time of the crop.
 Why BT brinjal in India is banned
after bt brinjal controversy?
• Several studies on Bt crops in particular and GM crops in general show
that there are many potential health hazards in foods bio-engineered in this
manner.
• GM-fed animals in various studies have shown that there are problems
with growth, organ development and damage, immune responsiveness
• A recent study from Madhya Pradesh in India shows adverse human health
impacts in farm and factory workers with allergies caused by Bt Cotton.
• Itching skin, eruptions on the body, swollen faces etc., were also reported,
correlated with levels of exposure to Bt Cotton.
• The ill-effects of ‘Bt’ tomato, potato, corn and soya were also studied in
laboratory rats and scientists had even noticed bleeding in their small
intestine, overall stunted growth, high blood pressure, loss of immunity
and inability to reproduce
 The promises and claims
• It is reported that the average shoot damage in Bt Brinjal hybrids ranged from 0.04% to 0.3%
as compared to 0.12% to 2.5% in non-Bt Brinjal hybrids.
• The percentage of damaged fruits reportedly ranged from 2.5% to 20% in Bt Brinjal to 24%
to 58% in non-Bt counterparts
• No significant difference was noted between Bt Brinjal and Non-Bt Brinjal, as per the
company which did biosafety tests like acute oral toxicity, sub-chronic oral toxicity in rats,
allergenecity of protein to rats, germination, weediness and aggressiveness tests, soil micro-
biota studies etc.
• This will help small and marginal farmers from having to use 25-80 sprays of pesticides
which are ineffective, says the company
• The company claims that human health concerns due to pesticide use can be addressed with
this transgenic Brinjal with its in-built tolerance
• Company promises that through this in-built tolerance, there would be substantial increase in
marketable yields. Higher yields would result in higher incomes for farmers, it is expected
• The pricing of the seeds will be based on a cost-recovery model, making it affordable for all
farmers, whether the seed comes from the private sector or the public sector, it is promised
• Farmers will be able to continue to save and re-use their seed for the hybrids and varieties
because of this arrangement, it is reported
 Health and Environmental impacts

• It produces a protein in the vegetable cells that work to induce antibiotic

resistance and obviously poses as a major health concern and it therefore is
inappropriate for commercialised use. 
• Bt brinjal also appears to have 15 percent less calories and different alkaloid
content compared to non-GM brinjal and also contains an insecticide toxin.
When fed to animals, effects were observed on blood chemistry with
significant differences according to the sex of the animal or period of
measurement. 
• Other effects were on blood clotting time (prothrombin), total bilirubin (liver
health), and alkaline phosphate in goats and rabbits. This poses as a major
environmental and biodiversity threat.
• Changes in lactating cows were observed in increased weight gain, intake of
more dry roughage matter and milk production up by 10-14 percent as if
they were treated by a hormone.
• Rats fed Bt brinjal had diarrhoea, increased water consumption; decrease in
liver weight, and liver to body weight.
• Feed intake was modified in broiler chickens.
 VIEWS ABOUT BT BRINJAL
It's a known fact that most of these experts oppose this (Bt) new
technology. A normal farmer sprays pesticide at least 50 to 80 times in the
whole lifecycle of a brinjal crop so you can imagine how much pesticide a
normal person who eats brinjal has to swallow. Bt brinjal is a new
technology which only harms some pests and not humans by any means.
The reality is that the farmers need Bt crops."
- MK Sharma, Managing Director, Mahyco-Monsanto Biotech, in June
2008
Bt brinjal should not be launched in the country as the Bt toxin gene
produces poison and when it can harm pests, where's the proof that it won't
be harmful to humans? It should not be produced at the moment as we
really don't have adequate testing material."
- Suman Sahia, Convener, Gene Campaign, in June 2008