What are the non-food impacts of GM crop cultivation on farmers' health?

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Outcome of a workshop

International audience; In tackling agricultural challenges, policy-makers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have increasingly considered genetically modified (GM) crops as a potential tool to increase productivity and to improve product quality. Yet, as elsewhere in the world, the adoption of GM crops in SSA has been marked by controversy, encompassing not only the potential risks to animal and human health, and to the environment, but also other concerns such as ethical issues, public participation in decision-making, socio-economic factors and intellectual property rights. With these non-scientific factors complicating an already controversial situation, disseminating credible information to the public as well as facilitating stakeholder input into decision-making is essential. In SSA, there are various and innovative risk communication approaches and strategies being developed, yet a comprehensive analysis of such data is missing. This gap is addressed by giving an overview of current strategies, identifying similarities and differences between various country and institutional approaches and promoting a way forward, building on a recent workshop with risk communicators working in SSA

Flow mediated dilatation over the natural history of abdominal aortic aneurysms

<p>Abdominal aortic aneurysm, an abnormal dilatation of the descending aorta, disproportionately affects males and is often asymptomatic until rupture, posing major risk of mortality. The natural history varies greatly in individuals; some patients remain at subclinical aortic diameters for decades, others rapidly progress to sizes indicating surgical intervention. Surgical mortality is associated with age, so it is advantageous to predict growth of AAA. The biochemical implications of wall degradation may have systemic inflammatory effects which adversely affect the endothelium, which regulates vasomotor tone. Vasodilation is modulated by the release of nitric oxide and the measurement of flow mediated dilatation (FMD) is a widely used proxy for NO bioavailability. The goal of this study is to examine changes of FMD over time and its predictive value in AAA growth. We hypothesise that FMD correlates with future growth rate of AAAs in humans.</p> <p>In FMD, ultrasonography is used to measure the diameter of an artery before and after it is subjected to shear stress through temporary limb ischaemia. No past study of AAA patients has examined serial measurements of FMD. The OxAAA study collects serial measurements on AAA patients under surveillance and undergoing surgery. FMD predicts future aneurysm growth of AAA patients and FMD deteriorates over time. Due to its non-invasive and cost effective nature, FMD is useful in predicting the growth of AAA, and has also been shown to predict cardiovascular events, serving a two-fold purpose. In clinical contexts, it may be used to foresee imminent need for AAA repair, allowing for pre-surgical lifestyle changes. FMD may also indicate future growth, allowing for less frequent surveillance and reducing costs.</p

Additional file 4: of What are the non-food impacts of GM crop cultivation on farmers’ health?

Table S3. All articles published on the studies analysed

Inclusive development and prioritization of review questions in a highly controversial field of regulatory science

Abstract How to best assess potential health, environmental and other impacts of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and how to interpret the resulting evidence base have been long-standing controversial issues in the EU. As a response, transparency and inclusiveness became a major focus of regulatory science activities in the GMO impact area. Nevertheless, nearly three decades of controversies resulted in a heavily polarized policy environment, calling for further efforts. Against this backdrop the EU funded project GRACE explored the value of evidence synthesis approaches for GMO impact assessment and developed an evidence synthesis framework with a strong emphasis on openness, stakeholder engagement, transparency, and responsiveness to tackle regulatory science challenges. This framework was tested and implemented in the course of 14 systematic reviews or maps conducted on selected review questions spanning potential health, environmental, and socioeconomic impacts of GMOs. An inclusive development and prioritisation of review questions is of key importance in evidence synthesis as it helps to provide a better link between stakeholder demands and concerns and policy relevant outcomes. This paper, therefore, places a particular focus on the stakeholder involvement strategy developed and experiences gathered during this particular step in the course of the GRACE project. Based on this experience, possible lessons for future engagement exercises in highly controversial fields of regulatory science are discussed