Golden rice was genetically engineered to produce beta-carotene in the grain to address vitamin A deficiency. Over 100 million people in Asia and Africa suffer from vitamin A deficiency, which can cause blindness and death. Rice is a staple food in these regions. The original golden rice produced low levels of beta-carotene, but a new variety called Golden Rice 2 produces much higher levels. Golden rice is still undergoing field tests and has faced controversy from groups opposed to GMOs, though supporters argue it could help address malnutrition if approved.

1. SHAHEENA AZIZ A
BGS051514

2. WHY GOLDEN RICE ???
 At the beginning of the 20th century- 124 million people , in 118
countries in Africa and South-East Asia - affected by vitamin A
deficiency (VAD)
VAD responsible for 1-2 million deaths ,500,000 cases of irreversible
blindness and millions of cases of xerophthalmia annually.
 Rice is the staple food in many VAD affected countries, hence
genetically modified pro- vitamin A enriched rice is a simple and less
expensive alternative to vitamin supplements.
secure.avaaz.org

3. DISCOVERY
Golden Rice is the first purposefully created biofortified
crop, designed specifically for vitamin A deficiency.
 Created by Ingo Potrykus of the institute of Plant
sciences at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and
Peter Beyer of the University of Freiburg.
Original rice was called SGR1, and under greenhouse
conditions produced 1.6µg/g of carotene.
In 2005, a new variety – Golden rice 2 announced –
produces up to 23 times more beta-caroten than the
original variety.
http://www.gold
enrice.org/

4. The beta-carotene either accumulates in fatty tissues or
is transformed into vitamin A
In 2015, Professor Ingo Potrykus ,Professor Peter Beyer, and
Dr.Andrian Dubock won the patents for humanity award for golden rice

5. Golden Rice technology is based on the simple principle that rice
plants possess the whole machinery to synthesise β-carotene, and while
this machinery is fully active in leaves, parts of it are turned off in the
grain.
The addition of 2 genes-
• a daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarscissus) phytoene synthase (psy) gene
and
•a bacterial phytoene desaturase (crt I) gene
the pathway is turned back on and β-carotene consequently
accumulates in the grain.
The psy and crt l genes were transformed into the rice nuclear
genome and placed under the control of an endosperm specific
promoter, so they are only expressed in the endosperm
ENGINEERING OF GOLDEN RICE

8. Carotenoids and their derivatives include a vast number of molecules
and accordingly a great number of enzymes and cofactors.
Only a small number of carotenoids namely those with at least one
unsubstituted β-ionone ring, such as β-carotene have provitamin A
activity.
 Compounds derived from this important pathway include plant
hormones, like abscisic acid, the strigolactones and gibberellins.
Tocopherols (vitamin E), chlorophylls and quinones employ the
pathway intermediate GGPP as a building block for their synthesis.

9. BENEFITS
LOWERS RISK OF BLINDNESS, INFECTIONS, CANCERS AND DISEASES
REDUCE S GASTROINTESTINAL DISTRESS- golden rice is regarded as a
beneficial food to eat following an episode of diarrhea. It behaves as
like a mild astringent in the gastrointestinal system
REDUCES HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE AND HIGH CHOLESTEROL- Golden
rice is a low-fat and low-sodium food

10. CURRENT STATUS OF GOLDEN RICE

11. GOLDEN RICE PROJECT
The result of an initiative by the Rockefeller foundation
Aims in developing sustainable biofortification approach to mitigate
the problem of micronutrient deficiencies worldwide.
 Also includes a Humanitarian Board , composed of internationally
recognised experts belonging to various reputed institutions, provides
strategic guidance to the project.
The golden rice humanitarian board will ensure that the regulations
of GMOs will be respected.Also they will conduct bioavailability,
toxicology, and alergic tests to ensure that golden rice is safe for the
public use
The humanitarian board had a specially certified license for the
commercial use of golden rice technology

12. GOLDEN RICE PROJECT STATUS COORDINATED BY IRRI
The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) continues its
collaboration with national research agencies in the Philippines,
Indonesia, Bangladesh, and other countries to develop Golden Rice as a
potential new food-based approach to improve vitamin A status.
 Results of the first round of multi-location trials of Golden Rice
showed that beta carotene was produced at consistently high levels in
the grain, and that grain quality was comparable to the conventional
variety.
However, yields of candidate lines were not consistent across
locations and seasons, prompting research direction toward assessing
Golden Rice versions such as GR2-E and others

13. Screenhouse and confined field trials (CFTs) of Golden Rice are being
conducted by IRRI and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice),
rigorously following all biosafety and other regulatory protocols.
Similar activities are ongoing in Bangladesh using their local varieties,
and biosafety data are being generated as required by regulatory
agencies
Golden Rice made available broadly to farmers and consumers if,
successfully developed into rice varieties suitable for Asia, approved by
national regulators, and shown to improve vitamin A status in
community conditions

14. CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING GOLDEN RICE
The term genetically modified generally have a negative feedback
from the public
The original form of golden rice did not have enough vitamin A to be
beneficial for reducing the disease risk. But the problem was rectified
with the introduction of Golden rice 2.
The Greenpeace organization vehemently opposes the production
and use of golden rice citing this GMO will encourage the development
of more GMOs in the future
These activist also argue that a balanced diet that contains β-
caroteen ( kale, mustard, greens, carrots, braccoli, sweet potatoes)
provides an adequate amount of Vit-A and should therefore be utilized
first and foremost.

15. To account for the bioavailability of the rice certain human trails were
caried out
.
•In one trail they fed 5 American volunteres , who ate the rice with
butter and other foods. But this condition does not simulate that of
individuals suffering from malnutrition.
•In another trail they fed 72 Chinese children between the ages of 6 and
8, and concluded that one serving of Golden rice could provide half a
childs recommended intake of vitamin A .
•However, this study violated both U.S. federal regulations and Tufts
University’s ethics policies.
•Among other ethics violations, researchers fed Golden Rice to children
in China without informing their parents that the rice was genetically
engineered.
.

16. No tests have been done to assess the shelf life of the vitamin A in
Golden Rice. Rice is often stored for long periods of time. Neither have
tests been done on the effect of various types of cooking on the
vitamin-A availability of Golden Rice
No toxicological tests or animal feeding trials have been carried out to
assess possible health risks of Golden Rice. IRRI has announced that
animal feeding trials are being conducted in the US, but no results have
been published so far.

17. NEWS FROM WASHINGTON POST ,JUNE 29 2016
107 NOBLE LAUREATES SIGN LETTER BLASTING
GREENPEACE OVER GMOs
http://www.goldenrice.org/PDFs/Nobels%20pro%20GM.pdf
FROM GENETIC LITERACY PROJECT SITE
Adrian Dubock, Golden Rice scientist: Greenpeace, GMO
critics misrepresent humanitarian project

18. GOLDEN RICE IS NOT READY FOR THE MARKET YET
GM Golden Rice has been under development for over 20 years and is
still being tested. It is currently being field tested in the Philippines
There are no varieties of Golden Rice, or any other genetically
engineered rice, on the market anywhere in the world
.
Government officials and researchers from the International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI), have said it will be available for commercial
planting in 2016 or 2017.

19. “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy
food.” ―Hippocrates