Flawed scientific studies block progress and sow confusion

Abstract

Abstract Research in crop science in recent years has advanced at an unprecedented rate, and the intermingling of old and new crop breeding technologies has made the term “genetically modified”–and its variant, Genetically Modified Organism, or “GMO”–virtually obsolete. A kind of pseudo-category, it is primarily used pejoratively to refer to the use of the newest, most precise, most predictable, molecular genetic techniques. Prodigious amounts of time, effort and care have been expended to ensure that crops developed for commercialization using molecular techniques are safe, and that new traits are beneficial. Â Yet, despite these advances, some skepticism persists about them, partly due to the publication of fraudulent, poorly designed, and biased studies by a few “rogue scientists” whose intention is to contaminate the scientific literature and sow mistrust about molecular genetic modification among regulators and the public. We discuss how such flawed studies make it to publication and how the scientific community can combat such disinformation.