Application of polymerase chain reaction for high sensitivity detection of Roundup Ready™ soybean seeds and grains in varietal mixtures

Strong increase in the production of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) observed over the years has led to a consolidation of transgenic seed industries worldwide. The dichotomy between the evaluated risk and the perceived risk of transgenic use has defined their level of acceptability among different global societies. GMOs have been widely applied to agricultural commodities, among them the Roundup Ready™ (RR™) soybean line GTS 40-3-2 has become the most prevalent transgenic crop in the world. This variety was developed to confer plant tolerance against glyphosate-based agricultural herbicide Roundup Ready™. Issues related to detection and traceability of GMOs have gained worldwide interest due to their increasing global diffusion and the related socioeconomic and health implications. Also, due to the widespread use of GMOs in food production, labelling regulations have been established in some countries to protect the right of consumers and producers. Besides regulatory demand, consumer concern issues have resulted in the development of several methods of detecting and quantifying foods derived from genetically engineered crops and their raw materials. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been proven to be the method of choice to detect the presence or absence of the introduced genes of GMOs at DNA level. The present paper aims to verify whether the PCR technique can detect RR™ soybean seeds among conventional ones to further certification as non-GM soybean seeds and grains. This analysis could be accomplished through the development of new methodology called 'intentional contamination' of soybean conventional seeds or grains with the respective RR™ soybeans. The results show that the PCR method can be applied with high sensitivity in order to certify conventional soybean seeds and grains. Key words: certification of conventional soybean seeds and grains, detection of transgenic soybean, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), Roundup Ready (RR™) soybean