Tage Thorstensen

Research Scientist

(+47) 402 00 909
tage.thorstensen@nibio.no

Place
Ås H7

Visiting address
Høgskoleveien 7, 1433 Ås

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Abstract

Genetically modified maize DP41149 x MON 890349 x MON 874119 x DAS-40278-9 was developed by crossing to combine four single events: DP4114, MON 89034, MON 87411 and DAS-40278-9. DP4114 express the Cry1F protein to confer protection against certain lepidopteran pests, the Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 proteins to confer protection against certain coleopteran pests and PAT protein to confer tolerance to glufosinate-ammonium-containing herbicides. MON 89034 express the Cry1A.105 and Cry2Ab2 proteins to confer protection against certain lepidopteran pests. MON 87411 express the Cry3Bb1 protein to confer protection against certain coleopteran larvae and the DvSnf7 dsRNA confer protection against western corn rootworm, and the CP4 EPSPS protein for tolerance to glyphosate containing herbicides. DAS-40278-9 express the AAD-1 protein to catalyse the degradation of the general class ofherbicides known as aryloxyphenoxypropionates (AOPP) and to confer tolerance to 2,4- dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) herbicides.

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Abstract

Bt11 x MIR162 x MIR604 x MON 89034 x 5307 x GA21 was produced by conventional breeding of the GM maize events Bt11, MIR162, MIR604, MON 89034, 5307 and GA21. Accordingly, Bt11 x MIR162 x MIR604 x MON 89034 x 5307 x GA21 maize produces the transgenic proteins in the individual GM maize events (Cry1Ab, PAT, Vip3Aa20, PMI, mCry3A, MIR604 PMI, Cry1A.105, Cry2Ab2, eCry3.1Ab and mEPSPS). Event Bt11 maize expresses the insecticidal protein Cry1Ab that protects against feeding damage caused by certain lepidopteran pests and the phosphinothricin acetyltransferase (PAT) protein for weed control by providing tolerance to herbicide products containing glufosinate ammonium. Event MIR162 maize expresses the insecticidal protein Vip3Aa20 that protects against feeding damage caused by certain lepidopteran pests and the PMI protein which enables transformed plant cells to utilise mannose as a primary carbon source and therefore used as a selectable marker in the development of the MIR162 maize. Event MIR604 maize expresses the insecticidal protein mCry3A that protects against feeding damage caused by certain coleopteran pests and the MIR604 PMI protein which enables transformed plant cells to utilise mannose as a primary carbon source and therefore used as a selectable marker in the development of the MIR604 maize. Event MON 89034 maize expresses the insecticidal proteins Cry1A.105 and Cry2Ab2 that protect against feeding damage caused by certain lepidopteran pests. Event 5307 maize expresses the insecticidal protein eCry3.1Ab that protects against feeding damage caused by certain coleopteran pests and the PMI protein which enables transformed plant cells to utilise mannose as a primary carbon source and therefore used as a selectable marker in the development of the 5307 maize. Event GA21 expresses the double-mutated 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase enzyme (mEPSPS) for weed control by providing tolerance to herbicide products containing glyphosate.The scientific documentation provided in the application for genetically modified maize Bt11 x MIR162 x MIR604 x MON 89034 x 5307 x GA21 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in maize Bt11 x MIR162 x MIR604 x MON 89034 x 5307 x GA21 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of maize Bt11 x MIR162 x MIR604 x MON 89034 x 5307 x GA21 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel.

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Abstract

Event MON 87429 is a genetically modified maize developed via Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation. MON 87429 plants contain the transgenes pat, dmo, ft_t and cp4 epsps. Maize MON 87429 encodes the DMO, PAT and FT_T proteins. In addition, maize MON 87429 encodes the CP4 EPSPS protein and utilises an endogenous maize RNAi regulatory element to suppress its expression in pollen. This results in a lack of viable pollen and thus male sterility when MON 87429 plants are exposed to glyphosate-containing herbicides at growth stages ranging from V8 to V13. This is part of a hybridisation system to be used in inbred lines to facilitate the hybrid seeds production. This is not considered an agronomic trait since the application of glyphosate outside the specific growth stages does not lead to male sterile plants but reduces plant yield compared to plants not expressing the same trait. The scientific documentation provided in the application for genetically modified maize MON 87429 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in event MON 87429 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries. The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of event MON87429 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel

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Abstract

Stacked event MON 89034 × 1507 × MIR162 × NK603 × DAS‐40278‐9 (EFSA‐GMO‐NL‐2018‐151) is a genetically modified maize developed via conventional breeding. MON 89034× 1507 × MIR162 × NK603 × DAS‐40278‐9 plants contain the transgenes cry1A.105, cry2Ab2, cry1F, Vip3Aa20, cp4 epsps, pat, aad-1 and the phosphomannose isomerase (PMI) used as a selectable marker in the production of MIR162. MON89034 x 1507 x MIR162 x NK603 x DAS-40278-9 maize provides distinct sources for insect resistance combined with three distinct modes of herbicide tolerance: 2,4-D, glufosinate, and glyphosate. The scientific documentation provided in the application for genetically modified maize is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in event maize to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries. The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of event MON 89034 × 1507 × MIR162 × NK603 × DAS‐40278‐9 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel.

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Event MON 95379 is a genetically modified maize developed by a two-step process. In the first step, immature embryos of maize inbred line LH244 were co-cultured with a disarmed Agrobacterium tumefaciens (also known as Rhizobium radiobacter) strain ABI containing the vector PV-ZMIR522223. In the second step, selected R2 lines were crossed with maize inbred LH244 line expressing Crerecombinase, which had been transformed with vector PVZMOO513642. In the resulting plants, the CP4 EPSPS-cassette (used for selection of transformed plants) was excised by the Cre recombinase, and the Cre gene was subsequently segregated away, through conventional breeding, to obtain maize MON 95379. Maize MON 95379 expresses Cry1B.868, a chimeric protein containing domains from Cry1A, Cry1B and Cry1C naturally expressed in Bacillus thuringiensis, and Cry1Da_7, an optimised version of Cry1Da carrying four amino acids substitutions to increase its activity. The two Cry proteins expressed in maize MON 95379 provide protection against targeted pests within the order of butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) including fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda), sugarcane borer (Diatraea saccharalis) and corn earworm (Helicoverpa zea). The scientific documentation provided in the application for genetically modified maize MON 95379 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in event MON 95379 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries. The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of event MON 95379 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel.

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Abstract

Event MIR162 is a genetically modified maize developed via Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation of maize embryos. MIR162 plants contain the transgenes vip3Aa20, a modified version of the native vip3Aa1 from Bacillus thuringiensis, and the pmi gene from Escherichia coli. Vip3Aa20 encodes the insecticidal Vip3Aa20-protein, conferring MIR162 with resistance to several species of lepidopteran (order of butterflies and moths) insect pests. Pmi encodes the enzyme phosphomannose isomerase (PMI) which catalyses the isomerization of mannose-6-phosphate to fructose-6-phosphate. PMI was used as a selectable marker during development of MIR162. The scientific documentation provided in the renewal application (EFSA-GMO-RX-025) for maize MIR162 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in event MIR162 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries. The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of maize event MIR162 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel.

Abstract

The oilseed rape Ms8xRf3, developed by BASF Agricultural Solutions Seed US LLC, is a fertile hybrid tolerant to glufosinate-ammonium containing herbicides. The hybrid is derived through conventional breeding of the male sterile oilseed rape event Ms8 and the oilseed rape event Rf3, called the fertility restorer. Ms8 and Rf3 were produced by Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation of cells from a conventional oilseed cultivar. The dominant gene for male sterility in event Ms8 is barnase, and the dominant gene for fertility restoration in event Rf3 is barstar. The bar gene, conferring tolerance to glufosinateammonium, is found in both Ms8 and Rf3. The scientific documentation provided in the renewal application for the genetically modified oilseed rape events Ms8, Rf3 and Ms8 x Rf3 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in events Ms8, Rf3 and Ms8 x Rf3 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries.

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Abstract

Event MON 87701 is a genetically modified soybean developed via Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation. MON 87701 plants contain the transgene cry1Ac which encodes the protein Cry1Ac. The protein Cry1Ac provides resistance against specific lepidopteran pests. The scientific documentation provided in the renewal application (EFSA-GMO-RX-021) for soybean MON 87701 is adequate for risk assessment, and in accordance with EFSA guidance on risk assessment of genetically modified plants for use in food or feed. The VKM GMO panel does not consider the introduced modifications in soybean MON 87701 to imply potential specific health or environmental risks in Norway, compared to EU-countries. The EFSA opinion is adequate also for Norwegian considerations. Therefore, a full risk assessment of event MON 87701 was not performed by the VKM GMO Panel.

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Abstract

The Norwegian Scientific Committee for food an Environment (VKM) has assessed an application for authorisation of refined oilseed rape oil (Aquaterra®) derived from genetically modified oilseed rape line NS-B50027-4 for exclusive use as an ingredient in fish feed in Norway. NS-B50027-4 is also named DHA-canola. This report uses the term oilseed rape. NS-B50027-4 produces omega-3 long-chain (≥C20) polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 LC-PUFAs) in its seeds, with a high level of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and a small amount of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA). Aquaterra® also contains a significant level of alpha-Linolenic acid (ALA). Whereas ALA can be derived from plants, the primary producers of EPA and DHA are mainly marine microalgae. EPA and DHA are concentrated in the food chain to fish in the oceans and are often referred to as marine omega-3 fatty acids. NS-B50027-4 was developed as an alternative land-based source of marine fatty acids, mainly DHA. NS-B50027-4 was genetically modified to express seven transgenes derived from yeasts and marine microalgae that encode the enzymes necessary for the biosynthesis of omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. In addition, an eighth gene, pat, was inserted as a marker for selection purposes during development. The pat gene encodes the enzyme phosphinothricin N-acetyltransferase (PAT) conferring tolerance to glufosinate-ammonium herbicides. Equally to conventional refined oilseed rape oils any residues levels of proteins, including the introduced enzymes, will be negligible in the Aquaterra® oil. The risk assessment of Aquaterra® was conducted in accordance with the guidance for risk assessment of derived food and feed from genetically modified plants as described by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA, 2011a). The risk assessment is based primarily on scientific documentation provided in the application EFSA-GMO-NL-2019-160, which seeks approval for NS-B50027-4 for all applicable food and feed uses in the European Union (EU). VKM concludes that the provided scientific documentation fulfills the criteria of the EFSA guidance and is adequate for risk assessment. VKM concludes that the molecular characterisation, comparative, nutritional, toxicological and allergenicity assessments of NS-B50027-4 do not indicate increased risks to animal or human health compared to its conventional counterpart (comparator) or commercial reference varieties. Based on this together with specific analyses of the seed oil fraction and studies, e.g., in fish, VKM therefore concludes that the refined oil Aquaterra®, is equal to conventional oils from oilseed rape except for the altered composition in fatty acids. VKM concludes there is no increased health risk to fish fed Aquaterra® in feed compared to conventional feeds with oils from other sources, nor is there an indication of increased risk to the environment. Since Aquaterra® is equal to conventional oils from oilseed rape except for the marine omega-3 fatty acids already present in fish feeds, VKM concludes there is no greater need for health or environmental monitoring of feeds containing Aquaterra® than conventional feeds.

Abstract

Grey mold caused by the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea can affect leaves, flowers, and berries of strawberry, causing severe pre- and postharvest damage. The defense elicitor β-aminobutyric acid (BABA) is reported to induce resistance against B. cinerea and many other pathogens in several crop plants. Surprisingly, BABA soil drench of woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca) plants two days before B. cinerea inoculation caused increased infection in leaf tissues, suggesting that BABA induce systemic susceptibility in F. vesca. To understand the molecular mechanisms involved in B. cinerea susceptibility in leaves of F. vesca plants soil drenched with BABA, we used RNA sequencing to characterize the transcriptional reprogramming 24 h post-inoculation. The number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in infected vs. uninfected leaf tissue in BABA-treated plants was 5205 (2237 upregulated and 2968 downregulated). Upregulated genes were involved in pathogen recognition, defense response signaling, and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites (terpenoid and phenylpropanoid pathways), while downregulated genes were involved in photosynthesis and response to auxin. In control plants not treated with BABA, we found a total of 5300 DEGs (2461 upregulated and 2839 downregulated) after infection. Most of these corresponded to those in infected leaves of BABA-treated plants but a small subset of DEGs, including genes involved in ‘response to biologic stimulus‘, ‘photosynthesis‘ and ‘chlorophyll biosynthesis and metabolism’, differed significantly between treatments and could play a role in the induced susceptibility of BABA-treated plants.

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Abstract

The Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food and Environment (VKM) initiated this work to examine the extent to which organisms developed by genome-editing technologies pose new challenges in terms of risk assessment. This report considers whether the risk assessment guidance on genetically modified organisms, developed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), can be applied to evaluate potential risks of organisms developed by genome editing. Background Gene technology has allowed for the transfer of genes between organisms and species, and thereby to design altered genotypes with novel traits, i.e. GMOs. A new paradigm started in the early 2000s with the development of genome-editing techniques. Unlike traditional genetic modification techniques resulting in insertion of foreign DNA fragments at random locations in the genome, the new genome-editing techniques additionally open for a few single nucleotide edits or short insertions/deletions at a targeted site in an organism’s genome. These new techniques can be applied to most types of organisms, including plants, animals and microorganisms of commercial interest. An important question is how the novel, genome-edited organisms should be evaluated with respect to risks to health and the environment. The European Court of Justice decided in 2018 to include genome-edited organisms in the GMO definition and hence in the regulatory system already in place. This implies that all products developed by genome-editing techniques must be risk-assessed within the existing regulatory framework for GMOs. The European and Norwegian regulatory frameworks regulate the production, import and placing on the market of food and feed containing, consisting of or produced from GMOs, as well as the release of GMOs into the environment. The assessment draws on guidance documents originally developed by EFSA for risk assessment of GMOs, which were drawn up mainly to address risks regarding insertion of transgenes. The new genome-editing techniques, however, provide a new continuum of organisms ranging from those only containing a minor genetic alteration to organisms containing insertion or deletion of larger genomic regions. Risk assessment of organisms developed by genome editing The present discourse on how new genome-editing techniques should be regulated lacks an analysis of whether risk assessment methodologies for GMOs are adequate for risk assessment of organisms developed through the use of the new genome-editing techniques. Therefore, this report describes the use of genome-editing techniques in food and feed production and discusses challenges in risk assessment with the regulatory framework. Specifically, this report poses the question as to whether the EFSA guidance documents are sufficient for evaluating risks to health and environment posed by genome-edited plants, animals and microorganisms. To address these questions, the report makes use of case examples relevant for Norway. These examples, intended for food and feed, include oilseed rape with a modified fatty acid profile, herbicide-tolerant and pest-resistant crops, sterile salmon, virus-resistant pigs and hornless cattle. The report considers all aspects of the stepwise approach as described in the EFSA guidance documents. Conclusions The inherent flexibility of the EFSA guidance makes it suitable to cover health and environmental risk assessments of a wide range of organisms with various traits and intended uses. Combined with the embedded case-by-case approach the guidance is applicable to genome-edited organisms. The evaluation of the guidance demonstrates that the parts of the health and environmental risk assessment concerned with novel traits (i.e. the phenotype of the organism) may be fully applied to all categories of genome-edited organisms. ............

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Abstract

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens has caused a serious worldwide problem in infection treatment in recent years. One of the pathogens is methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which is a major cause of skin and soft tissue infections. Alternative strategies and novel sources of antimicrobials to solve antibiotic resistance problems are urgently needed. In this study, we explored the potential of two broad-spectrum bacteriocins, garvicin KS and micrococcin P1, in skin infection treatments. The two bacteriocins acted synergistically with each other and with penicillin G in killing MRSA in vitro. The MICs of the antimicrobials in the three-component mixture were 40 ng/ml for micrococcin P1 and 2 μg/ml for garvicin KS and penicillin G, which were 62, 16, and at least 1,250 times lower than their MICs when assessed individually. To assess its therapeutic potential further, we challenged the three-component formulation in a murine skin infection model with the multidrug-resistant luciferase-tagged MRSA Xen31, a strain derived from the clinical isolate S. aureus ATCC 33591. Using the tagged-luciferase activity as a reporter for the presence of Xen31 in wounds, we demonstrated that the three-component formulation was efficient in eradicating the pathogen from treated wounds. Furthermore, compared to Fucidin cream, which is an antibiotic commonly used in skin infection treatments, our formulation was also superior in terms of preventing resistance development.

Abstract

Plants are exposed to various pathogens in their environment and have developed immune systems with multiple defense layers to prevent infections. However, often pathogens overcome these resistance barriers, infect plants and cause disease. Pathogens that cause diseases on economically important crop plants incur huge losses to the agriculture industry. For example, the 2016 outbreak of strawberry grey mold (Botrytis cinerea) in Norway caused up to 95% crop losses. Such outbreaks underline the importance of developing novel and sustainable tools to combat plant diseases, for example by increasing the plants’ natural disease resistance. Priming plant defenses using chemical elicitors may enhance resistance against multiple pathogens. Such an approach may reduce the use of chemical fungicides and pesticides that often select for resistant strains of pests and pathogens. My presentation will focus on the effectiveness of different chemical agents to prime woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca) defenses against the necrotroph B. cinerea. We have identified several genes that seem to play a role in disease resistance in strawberry and associated epigenetic memory mechanisms. Our results point out new management avenues for more sustainable crop protection schemes.

Abstract

Plants are exposed to various pathogens in their environment and have developed immune systems with multiple layers of defence to fight-back. However, often pathogens overcome the resistance barriers, infect the plants to cause the disease. Pathogens that cause diseases on economically important crop plants like strawberry incur huge losses to the agriculture industry. For example, The 2016 outbreak of strawberry grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) in Norway caused up to 95% crop losses. Outbreaks like this underline the importance of developing novel and sustainable tools to combat plant diseases, for example by increasing the plants’ natural disease resistance. Priming plant defences using chemical elicitors may be effective in providing the enhanced resistance against multiple pathogens. We have used β-aminobutyric acid (BABA) as a chemical priming agent to induce resistance in Fragaria vesca against Botrytis cinerea. Effects of BABA on disease progression and defence responses of Fragaria are being characterized using molecular tools like RNAseq, RT-PCR and ChIP. As priming chemicals may induce an epigenetic memory in treated plants, we also plan to study the histone methylation patterns in primed plants and the genes that are regulated. Our long-term aim is to understand the duration of the epigenetic memory and its cross-generational transmission to the progeny in Fragaria. Our results will help guide various crop protection strategies in addition to providing new insights to develop novel tools for plant disease management.

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Abstract

Plant research and breeding has a long and successful history in the Scandinavian countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Researchers in the region have been early in adopting plant gene technologies as they developed. This review gives a background, as well as discuss the current and future progress of plant gene technology in these four countries. Country-specific details of the regulation of genetically modified plants are described, as well as similarities and differences in the approach to regulation of novel genome-editing techniques. Also, the development of a sustainable bioeconomy may encompass the application of plant gene technology and we discuss whether or not this is reflected in current associated national strategies. In addition, country-specific information about the opinion of the public and other stakeholders on plant gene technology is presented, together with a country-wise political comparison and a discussion of the potential reciprocal influence between public opinion and the political process of policy development. The Scandinavian region is unique in several aspects, such as climate and certain agriculturally related regulations, and at the same time the region is vulnerable to changes in plant breeding investments due to the relatively small market sizes. It is therefore important to discuss the role and regulation of innovative solutions in Scandinavian plant research and breeding.