A genetically modified wheat trial has ended in failure, after around £3 million ($4.7 million) was invested in the scheme. The UK-based trials - dubbed the “whiffy wheat” project - were set up to investigate the possibility of developing an aphid-resistant form of GM wheat.
While only $1.2 million was spent on the actual project, the group used an additional $3.5 million on rolling out protective fencing and other security measures. Allegedly, these measures were necessary to protect the experiments from disgruntled anti-GM activists.
In responding to the failure, the anti-GM campaign group GM Freeze said the scientists had wasted millions of pounds of British taxpayers’ money on trying to “outwit nature.” The entire project, along with its security requirements, were funded by the government through the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
The scientists were attempting to develop a strain of GM wheat that released pheromones, in response to pest attacks. However, after five years of research, the group believes the natural aphid population became immune to the effects of the pheromones, and, instead, simply ignored the GM wheat’s defensive scent.
The crops were designed to release the pheromone (E)-beta-farnesene (EbetaF), by adding a gene from a type of peppermint plant. In theory, the pheromone should have triggered an alarm mechanism within the insects, prompting them to flee from the perceived danger, while also triggering an influx of aphid predators.
Under laboratory conditions, the pheromone worked perfectly by repelling the aphids. In the wild, however, the tests found the GM wheat to be ineffective in repelling the little critters.
Speaking of the team’s failure, the study’s lead author, Dr. Toby Bruce, offered the following statement:
“In science we never expect to get confirmation of every hypothesis. Often it is the negative results and unexpected surprises that end up making big advances - penicillin was discovered by accident, for example.”
In the future, the team intends to continue its research endeavors. Dr. Bruce claims the experiments resulted in “more questions than answers,” and that answering these questions could lead to a better understanding of the interactions between plants and insects.
The study, entitled The first crop plant genetically engineered to release an insect pheromone for defence, was published in the June 25 issue of the journal Nature.
Top image credit: Rothamsted Research.