A huge variety of naked/free nucleic acids are being produced in …

• Executive Summary
• ‘Naked’ and ‘free’ nucleic acids
• DNA persists in all environments and is readily taken up by cells of all organisms
• Hazards of naked nucleic acids
• The horizontal transfer of transgenic DNA
• The hazards of horizontal gene transfer
• Conclusion
• References
• Box 1: Naked nucleic acids in genetic engineering biotechnology
• Box 2 Free nucleic acids resulting from genetic engineering biotechnology
• Box 3: Hazards from naked nucleic acids
• Box 4: Reasons to expect that transgenic DNA may be more likely to spread horizontally than non-transgenic DNA
• Box 5: Potential hazards from horizontal gene transfer of naked/free nucleic acids
• Box 6: Possible links between genetic engineering biotechnology and the recent resurgence of infectious diseases
• Box 7: Current regulatory oversight is seriously out of date and does not address the dangers of naked or free nucleic acids

The naked/free nucleic acids created by genetic engineering biotechnology are potentially the most dangerous xenobiotics to pollute our environment. Unlike chemical pollutants which dilute out and degrade over time, nucleic acids can be taken up by all cell to multiply, mutate and recombine indefinitely. The need for regulatory oversight at both national and international levels is long overdue. It is irresponsible to continue to exclude naked/free nucleic acids from the scope of the Biosafety Protocol.