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Title: NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED PEANUT LINES WITH RESPECT TO THE PARENT CULTIVAR OKRUN

Author
item JONNALA, R - OSU, DEPT PLANT & SOIL
item DUNFORD, N - OK FOOD & AGRIC PRODUCT
item Chamberlin, Kelly

Submitted to: Annual Meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/2004
Publication Date: 7/12/2004
Citation: Jonnala, R.S., Dunford, N.T., Chenault, K.D. 2004. Nutritional composition of genetically modified peanut lines with respect to the parent cultivar Okrun [abstract]. Annual Meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists, July 12-16, 2004, Las Vegas, Nevada. 99E-8.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is an economically important crop throughout the world. Peanut is susceptible to many types of fungal pathogens. Genetic engineering offers great potential for developing peanut cultivars resistant to a broad spectrum of pathogens that pose a recurring threat to peanut health. The Wheat, Peanut and Other Field Crops Research Unit at the USDA-ARS, Stillwater, OK, focuses on developing alternatives to chemical pesticides to protect plants from disease. Somatic embryos of the peanut cultivar Okrun were transformed with a chitinase gene from rice and/or a beta-1-3-glucanase from alfalfa via microprojectile bombardment. Hydrolases such as chitinase and beta-1-3-glucanase are known to degrade the cell walls of many fungi that attack plants, making them rational candidates for over-expression through genetic engineering to produce crops resistant to fungal disease. In the safety assessment of biotechnology-derived foods, it is helpful to compare the new plant variety to its traditional counterpart because the counterpart has a history of safe use as a food. The main objective of this research project is the assessment of "substantial equivalence" and nutritional safety of biotechnology-derived peanut lines. The focus of this study is the peanut lines developed for growth in the Southwestern U.S. Three transgenic peanut lines 188, 540, and 654 were analyzed for their oil, protein, ash, moisture, total dietary fiber, mineral, and fatty acid composition. Official AOCS and AOAC analytical methods were used for all the analyses. Values for each specified measurement in each transgenic line were compared to those of the parent cultivar Okrun. The experimental results indicate similar proximate composition between transgenic peanut lines examined in this study and the cultivar Okrun.