(Revue Scientifique Et Technique - Office International Des Epizooties, 2005) Kapuscinski, Anne
A fluorescent zebrafish was the first genetically engineered animal to be
marketed, and biotechnologists are developing many transgenic fish and
shellfish. Biosafety science is not sufficiently advanced to be able to draw
scientifically reliable and broadly trusted conclusions about the environmental
effects of these animals. The science is best developed for identifying hazards
posed by environmental spread of a transgenic fish or shellfish and least
developed for assessing potential ecological harms of spread. Environmental
spread of certain transgenic fish or shellfish could be an indirect route of entry
into the human food supply. The management of predicted environmental risks is
in its infancy and has thus far focused on the first step of the risk management
process, i.e. risk reduction, via a few confinement methods. There is a critical
need to improve scientific methods of environmental safety assessment and
management and to gather empirical data needed to substantiate biosafety
conclusions and to effectively manage transgenic fish and shellfish. Scientists
and potentially affected parties should participate in prioritising the knowledge
gaps to be addressed.
