Comments on: Herbicide resistant weeds in a GM field

By: ResearchBlogging.org News » Blog Archive » Editor’s Selections: Cheating Wasps, Evolving Robots, GM-doh!, and Trashing the Ocean

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 01:43:50 +0000

[...] the environment. However, heavy application of herbicide in fields of GM herbicide resistant crops can exert such a strong selective pressure on weeds that they become herbicide resistant, too. Ah, unintended [...]

By: SB

SB — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:11:51 +0000

Yes. I think they’re the sort of thing that well-adjusted, efficient twenty-first century brain skip over!

By: Thomas Kluyver

Thomas Kluyver — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:09:44 +0000

Ah, I see. I’d missed the ‘possibly related posts’.

By: SB

SB — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:05:30 +0000

Yes indeed, my mistake. There does also seem to be some debate about whether ragwort’s actually poisonous in quantities which a cow might realistically eat. I’ve certainly always believed that it is, but DEFRA don’t seem so sure any longer. It does, however, still make milk taste bad, so some of my childhood learning still stands.

I have a list of automatically generated “possibly related posts” at the end of the article, including one about giant resistant ragweed.

By: Thomas Kluyver

Thomas Kluyver — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:39:23 +0000

They're closely related: the giant one is Artemisia trifida, and common ragweed is Ambrosia artemisiifolia. Wait a minute, I've worked out why we're confused (I was thinking the same thing until I tried some searches just now). The poisonous one is ragwort, not ragweed. Jacobaea vulgaris is poisonous to mammals. Ragweed isn't particularly, although it can trigger hayfever. Ragwort (the poisonous one) is native to Europe and invasive in North America (and other places). Ragweed is an American species which has been introduced over here. They're both in the sunflower/daisy family (Asteraceae). We learn something every day! I'm still puzzled about where you got giant ragweed from, though. I can't see that I mentioned it! :-S

By: SB

SB — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:44:49 +0000

No, I have never heard of ragweed being eaten before. I’m just used to the kind that makes cows’ milk go bad so adding “giant” and “resistant” sounds like a story that Wyndham would be proud of! Problems in the cheese supply would be a major threat to society! I suspect though, that the giant stuff and the nasty stuff are different things.

By: Thomas Kluyver

Thomas Kluyver — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:48:46 +0000

We do indeed, but not the same species. The weed in this work is Palmer's amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri). According to Wikipedia, there are several species of amaranth we use as grains, but not Palmer's amaranth. In fact, quinoa is also an amaranth (it's Amaranthus quinoa!). You're right, though, it's probably possible to breed it back into the one we eat (a quick search turns up this paper). Whether there's demand for 'roundup ready' style amaranth, I don't know enough about farming to say. I'm a bit confused about the giant ragweed. Is that in your breakfast cereal too? It is apparently edible, by this, admittedly unscientific, report, but I can't easily find reports of it being used as food.

By: Tweets that mention Herbicide resistant weeds in a GM field « Thomas' Plant-Related Blog -- Topsy.com

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:11:34 +0000

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by ResearchBlogging.org, Moleculen&Materialen. Moleculen&Materialen said: Onkruid wordt op eigen kracht resistent in veld met genetisch gemodificeerd gewas http://goo.gl/fb/dxsU (Engels) [...]

By: SB

SB — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 10:47:23 +0000

But we eat amaranth too, no? At least, my breakfast cereal contains the stuff, and the blurb on the back seems to think that it’s God’s gift to human tastebuds and longevity. So can’t they just put legs on the herbicide-resistant amaranth (Using one of the spare genes, perhaps. Or maybe I’m not being entirely literal.) and make it wonder across to go and be useful in the amaranth field? Or at least use the resistant kind to make a hybrid with the edible kind?

The Giant ragweed however sounds terrifying.