Safety assessment of rice genetically modified with soybean glycinin by feeding studies on rats

Feeding studies on rice genetically modified with soybean glycinin were per formed on rats for four weeks. The rats were divided into three groups, eac h being fed on (I) only a commercial diet, (II) this diet plus control rice and (III) this diet plus rice genetically modified with glycinin. The rats were fed with 10 g/kg-weight of rice every day by oral administration. Dur ing the test period, the rats in every group grew well without marked diffe rences in appearance, food intake, body weight, or cumulative body weight g ain. There were also no significant differences in the blood count, blood c omposition or internal organ weights among the rats. Necropsy at the end of the experiment indicated neither pathological symptoms nor histopathologic al abnormalities in the liver and kidney. Judging from these results, the r ice genetically modified with glycinin is considered to have been essential ly the same in nutritional and biochemical characteristics as the control r ice.