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roseBudd

(8,718 posts)
18. Only one flawed if not fraudulent study that claims GM corn causes cancer
Sun May 26, 2013, 05:02 PM
May 2013
http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2012/11/retraction-gm-crop-cancer-study.html

Study flaws
The EFSA concluded that the researchers, led by Gilles-Eric Séralini of the University of Caen in France, failed to use enough rats in the study to draw statistically valid conclusions about whether the GM food or glyphosate they were fed caused extra cancers compared with control rats. Furthermore, says the authority, the researchers relied on strains of rats that frequently develop tumours spontaneously, especially in old age.

"Conclusions cannot be drawn on the difference in tumour incidence between the treatment groups on the basis of the design, the analysis and the results as reported," says the review of the study. The same conclusion was reached independently by six national food safety bodies also asked to review the study, from Denmark, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy and Belgium.

The EFSA and the panels say that Séralini used a fifth as many rats as would be required for standard, internationally accepted toxicology testing, making his conclusions statistically unreliable. "Given the spontaneous occurrence of tumours in Sprague-Dawley rats, the low number of rats reported in the Séralini publications is insufficient to distinguish between specific treatment effects and chance occurrences of tumours in rats," says the authority.

The EFSA found the NK603 maize strain to be safe in 2003. In its report this week, it declared that there is no need to re-evaluate the safety of the maize or the herbicide.

Séralini's backersclaim that he's the victim of a "covert war" orchestrated by supporters of GM technology to discredit criticism. "Behind the cohort of academic titles [of critics] that are listed is a hidden 'biotech sphere' which brings together biotechnology researchers, regulatory policy experts and representatives of industry," says a statement from CRIIGEN, the France-based Committee for Research & Independent Information on Genetic Engineering, which opposes GM crops and supported Séralini's study.

The study is the second in recent years by Séralini to assess the safety of NK603. His first study was also critised. New Scientist wrote at the time: "Independent toxicologists contacted by New Scientist said Séralini's analysis overplays the importance of minor variations that most experienced toxicologists would consider to be random background noise."
BRAVO! Voice for Peace May 2013 #1
haha oops Voice for Peace May 2013 #2
How is this different than climate denier Lord Monkton's bad science? roseBudd May 2013 #3
Some art is bad. randome May 2013 #6
Peer reviewed research is the gold standard roseBudd May 2013 #13
Study linking GM crops and cancer questioned roseBudd May 2013 #4
One fucked up study does nothing to make them less evil. TalkingDog May 2013 #5
It is a fraudulent study, and it is the only one roseBudd May 2013 #8
Um.... your point? TalkingDog May 2013 #15
And if you want some science on damage done, here's an article for you. TalkingDog May 2013 #16
I really like this article.... Now I don't feel so bad that I have so many dandelions in my yard... midnight May 2013 #20
GMOs are a big problem, but not why you might think Lordquinton May 2013 #7
I don't have a problem with that. I have a problem with promulgating bad science roseBudd May 2013 #9
Thank you! Scuba May 2013 #10
How rigorous are the studies that get this stuff approved in the first place? rucky May 2013 #11
You suspect. Shouldn't you do the research before roseBudd May 2013 #12
I would, but I don't have a lab. n/t rucky May 2013 #22
My sister just went to a Monsanto protest Bonx May 2013 #14
Only one flawed if not fraudulent study that claims GM corn causes cancer roseBudd May 2013 #18
Thanks ! -nt Bonx May 2013 #19
I Fucking Love Science, too. And here's what I know - jazzimov May 2013 #17
Ahem.... hedgehog May 2013 #21
Latest Discussions»General Discussion»I succumbed to peer press...»Reply #18