Maize event MON94804 has been genetically modified to contain the GA20ox_SUP suppression cassette, developed from the coding sequence of the ZmGA20ox3 and ZmGA20ox5 genes from corn, is flanked and separated with three Osa-miR1425 fragments from rice. This cassette suppresses the expression of the ZmGA20ox3 and ZmGA20ox5 genes in corn through RNA interference mechanisms. This leads to a decrease in gibberellic acid (GA) levels in the stalk, causing a reduction in internode length and ultimately resulting in decreased overall plant height compared to conventional control corn. Additionally, the T-DNA contains the cp4 epsps gene, which encodes the 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (CP4 EPSPS) protein, conferring glyphosate herbicide tolerance. This served as a selectable marker, but it subsequently segregated out after the transformation process using glyphosate to create MON94804 maize.
The food safety assessment performed by the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) as advisory and technical arm of Thai FDA. BIOTEC conduct food safety assessment according to codex guideline and based on the safety data and information provided by the applicant (as specified in Annex 2 attached to Notification of the Ministry of Public Health No.431). According to the existing scientific data and information available during the safety assessment, it is concluded that the maize event MON94804 is substantially equivalent to its conventional counterpart in terms of morphology, nutritional, toxicity and allergenicityallergenicity, except for the short-stature trait, which is the target of genetic modification.
Relevant links to documents and information prepared by the competent authority responsible for the safety assessment :