Biosafety SA awards NWU Puk for a second time

The School of Environmental Sciences and Development on the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University has received yet another award for research on genetically modified (GM)-related biosafety.
 

Profs. Johnnie van den Berg (left) and Carlos Bezuidenhout (right) of the School of Environmental Sciences and Development of the NWU Puk and their students, Bianca Venter, Hermoine Venter and Diedrik Pretorius.

  The project manager of Biosafety South Africa, Dr. Anita Burger, says this School’s interdisciplinary approach to GM research is establishing themselves as the leading environment biosafety research group in the country.
  Prof. Carlos Bezuidenhout, chairperson of the subject group Microbiology, received funding from Biosafety South Africa this year for research on the target and non-target effect of Bt mealies and cotton products in South Africa.  Bt mealies and Bt cotton refers to mealies and cotton that have been genetically modified to produce an insect-killing protein of the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which provides the GM mealies with more resistance to insects.
  Burger says the project strives for three objectives, namely to investigate the genetic processes related to the development of resistance of the Africa stem-borer to Bt mealies, the potential of gene flow to aquatic species that occur in the vicinity of Bt mealie lands, to study and to do an evaluation of possible cotton boll-worm resistance to Bt cotton in South Africa.
  “These aspects of insect resistance management in mealies and cotton have thus far received little attention in South Africa and can be important where Bt mealies and cotton are planted in close vicinity to each other.”
  The award of Biosafety South Africa follows the one made to Prof Johnnie van den Berg from the same School in April last year.  The aim of Van den Berg’s project is to study the effect of Bt mealies on selected non-target insects, amphibians and earthworms.
  Burger says the two projects form part of the strategic biosafety research programme of Biosafety South Africa. “This research will contribute to information which is important in environment risk assessment and monitoring of GM organisms in support of the national regulating framework.  Apart from this, the project contributes directly to capacity building in biosafety research in South Africa by providing three postgraduate bursaries.”