The ethical and legal concerns of the use of genetically modified (GM) foods in South Africa

A Research Report submitted to the Faculty of Health Science, University of Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Masters of Science in Medicine in Bioethics and Health Law Johannesburg, 2016Worldwide genetically modified (GM) foods provide one of the major challenges facing the food industry in the twenty-first century. The safety of GM foods are being questioned by consumers, researchers and medical professionals as it is believed that these foods may pose a serious public health risk, especially for the young, aged, pregnant and immuno-compromised persons (Azadi and Ho, 2010). At present the safety of GM foods remains questionable mainly because of insufficient long term scientific data, and the vulnerability of the developing and developed countries to satisfy the food demands of their growing populations. There are already some 800 million people who do not have access to sufficient food to meet their needs. Malnutrition plays a significant role in half the nearly 12 million deaths each year in developing countries, of children under the age of five (Asante, 2008). Therefore, the need for increasing agricultural yields is of urgent concern in the entire developing world. A multitude of reasons are put forward to validate GM food production. The use of GM microbes does not necessarily raise alarms but there are considerable ethical concerns; concerns about “messing with nature”; concerns about safety for human health, and concerns about environmental impact (Racovita, 2013). However, the technology offers opportunities to accelerate the efficiency and extent of further agricultural improvements by the transfer of genes conferring resistance to pests, disease, herbicides and environmental stress, as well as quality traits such as improved post-harvest storage, flavour, enhanced nutritional content and colour (Coles and Ladikas, 2013). The aim of the research project is to raise the ethical, legal and social issues about the use of GM foods in South Africa. The research will also highlight the ongoing debate in the areas of environmental protection, public perceptions and acceptance and ethical concerns.MT201

Antimicrobial activity of plant phenols from Chlorophora excelsa and Virgilia oroboides

The anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activity of four aqueous plant extracts (1 x 104 μg/ml) of 2,3'4,5'-tetra hydroxy-4'-geranylstilbene (chlorophorin) and 3',4, 5' - trihydroxy - 4' - geranylstilbene (Iroko) from the tree Chlorophora excelsa and (6aR,11aR)-3-hydroxy-8,9-methylenedioxypterocarpan (Maackiain) and 7-hydroxy-4'-methoxyisoflavone (formononetin) from Virgilia oroboides were evaluated by the seeded agar overlay well diffusion method. The test organisms and bioautography used included: Bacillus coagulans, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Mycobacteria tuberculosis, Aspergillus flavus and Fusarium verticilloides. Vancomycin, the drug of choice for these organisms was used as the control at 30 μg/ml. The extracts showed that chlorophorin at 1.95 μg/ml and Iroko at 3.125 and 6.25 μg/ml respectively were active in inhibiting the growth of S. pneumoniae and B. coagulans and not active against K. pneumoniae and E. coli. Maackiain; formononetin and formononetin acetate showed little activity against S. pneumonia, B. coagulans, K. pneumoniae and E. coli. None of the extracts showed activity against M. tuberculosis. Maackiain, formononetin, chlorophorin and Iroko inhibited F. vertiicilloides, maackiain being the most active compound. Formononetin, chlorophorin and Iroko inhibited A. flavus. A. flavus was most sensitive to chlorophorin and Iroko. The bioautography method confirmed these results and was attributed to the phenolic nature of the compounds.Keywords: Plant compounds, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, chlorophorin, IrokoAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(17), pp. 2254-226