New research published in the Turkish Journal of Biology completely shatters the myth that GMOs (genetically modified organisms) have been scientifically vested as safe. Scientists from the National Research Center in Egypt, after conducting what appears to be one of the first histopathological and biochemical analysis of GMOs, determined that diets containing GM corn and soy cause damage to vital and reproductive organs, blood, DNA and various other systems of the body.

This chronic toxicity study used Wistar albino rats as subjects, testing the effects of GM corn and soy over time increments of 30, 60 and 90 days. In each case, the transgenic materials were shown to have deleterious effects on the rats, altering enzyme production and damaging their genes. Increases in cellular damage were also observed, as were increases in the ratios of DNA fragmentation, compared to a control group of rats consuming verified non-GMO wheat feed.

The study was initiated as a post-marking biosafety assessment, presumably in lieu of the fact that such studies aren’t mandated by the governments of GMO-advocating countries like the U.S. If they were, the immense dangers of GMOs would be publicly exposed, possibly resulting in a moratorium or permanent ban on these hazardous products.

“The results of all parameters evaluated in our investigation were consistent and confirm that the GM diet fed to rats for 30, 60, or 90 days has deleterious histopathological and histochemical impacts,” reads the study’s abstract.

Pesticides applied to GMOs leave residues that cause health problems

Though nutritionally equivalent, according to the study, the diets of the two groups of rats differed enough that some might question whether genetic modification was the true cause of the health outcomes. After all, the non-GMO group was fed wheat rather than corn and soy, which leaves the possibility that some other factor may be to blame.

GMWatch, which analyzed the study, made proper note of this, concluding based on logic that a diet composed of GM soy and corn is clearly more toxic than one of non-GM wheat. At the same time, there is also the possibility that pesticide residues on GM crops, which was the only other major difference, may have also played a role.

The well-publicized Seralini study involving GM corn fed to rats included this as part of its hypothesis, pointing out that glyphosate contamination from Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide was present in the GM animal feed. This, along with the GMO content of the animal feed itself, appears to be a major factor in the toxicity of GMO derivatives.

Interestingly, this latest study found that GMOs and/or their respective pesticide residues cause liver damage in the short term — even after just 30 days of feeding, rats in the GM corn and soy group showed signs of sub-chronic toxicity. This suggests that Monsanto’s own animal-feeding studies, none of which even considered long-term toxicity, were inherently flawed or intentionally skewed.

The genotoxicity of GM corn and soy, as explained by the researchers, was demonstrated in germ cells, for which there was a considerable increase in the number of cells with chromosomal aberrations. Similarly, liver cells in the GMO feed group showed increased ratios of DNA fragmentation, indicating liver damage.

“Biochemical alterations in alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatinine, uric acid, and malondialdehyde concentrations were also observed,” explains the study.

GMOs insert genes into human tissue, reprogram human genome

A separate study conducted by several of the same researchers, published in theAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, found clear evidence of horizontal gene transfer from GMOs as well. Gene promoters engineered into some GMOs for the purpose of producing insecticidal proteins were observed to transfer directly into human and animal tissue, causing a variety of health problems.

Not only did these altered genes embed themselves into the tissues of the consuming animals, but they also triggered changes in other natural gene promoters already present in the animals’ bodies, converting them from organ-specific to globally active. In other words, certain GMO traits appear to have the capacity to reprogram the human genome when ingested — and this change is often unpredictable depending on the unique characteristics of the person ingesting them.

“Analysis of the results revealed that: 1) ingested fragments from the CaMV-35S promoter [a GM trait that produces insecticidal proteins in some GM crops] incorporated into blood, liver, and brain tissues of experimental rats, 2) The total mean of transfer of GM target sequences increased significantly by increasing the feeding durations, and 3) The affinity of different transgenic fragments from the ingested GM-diet, to be incorporated into the different tissues of rats varied from one target sequence to the other,” the study concluded.