Proteins being considered for genetically modified organisms (GMOs), are compared with known allergens as part of a rigorous safety assessment. These comparisons are performed using bioinformatics software that use computer science, statistics and mathematics to analyze vast amounts of data that is then interpreted by biologists. In 2001, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and World Health Organization (FAO/WHO) suggested a threshold to help identify proteins that are similar to known allergens and proteins that are too different to be an allergen. Proteins found to be similar to a known allergen then require additional allergy safety testing in the lab before being approved to be in a GMO crop. In this publication a new type of threshold that better uses statistics (called an E-score) was compared to the FAO/WHO guideline threshold. The E-score was found to be highly effective at identifying potential allergens without the need for additional lab testing. The full journal article can be accessed here: bit.ly/2e2Ruiy

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GMO Answers How are GMOS tested for allergies?

Product safety is of paramount importance at Monsanto. Bioinformatic analysis is one of a myriad of technologies that are used by Monsanto to assure that our products are safe.

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Andre Silvanovich, Gary Bannon, Scott McClain.  2009.  The use of E-scores to determine the quality of protein alignments.  Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology. Volume 54, Issue 3, Supplement, August 2009, Pages S26–S31.
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