Herbivorous Juvenile Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) Fed with Genetically Modified MON 810 and DAS-59122 Maize Varieties Containing Cry Toxins: Intestinal Histological, Developmental, and Immunological Investigations

Abstract

Feeding experiments with juvenile grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) fed with genetically modified maize MON 810 or DAS-59122 dried leaf biomass were carried out with 1-, 3- and 6-month exposures. Dosages of 3–7 μg/fish/day Cry1Ab or 18-55 μg/fish/day Cry34Ab1 toxin did not cause mortality. No difference occurred in body or abdominal sac weights. No differences appeared in levels of inorganic phosphate, calcium, fructosamine, bile acids, triglycerides, cholesterol, and alanine and aspartame aminotransferases. DAS-59122 did not alter blood parameters tested after 3 months of feeding. MON 810 slightly decreased serum albumin levels compared to the control, only in one group. Tapeworm (Bothriocephalus acheilognathi) infection changed the levels of inorganic phosphate and calcium. Cry34Ab1 toxin appeared in blood (12.6 ± 1.9 ng/mL), but not in the muscle. It was detected in B. acheilognathi. Cry1Ab was hardly detectable in certain samples near the limit of detection. Degradation of Cry toxins was extremely quick in the fish gastrointestinal tract. After 6 months of feeding, only mild indications in certain serum parameters were observed: MON 810 slightly increased the level of apoptotic cells in the blood and reduced the number of thrombocytes in one group; DAS-59122 mildly increased the number of granulocytes compared to the near-isogenic line.