GM herbs knock on the doors of Ayurveda. Can Ayurveda really be compatible with genetic modification? With traditional medicine herbs being genetically engineered, custodians of this ancient system will soon have to decide if they want to assimilate this new technology or insulate Ayurveda from it. While purists are not ready to take the risk, scientists say if tests reveal no added harm, there is no reason to shy away from GM herbs. Scientists at the Thiruvananthapuram-based Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (rgcb) have created GM varieties of Brahmi and Kariyat, two herbs commonly used in Ayurveda, by introducing into the dna clones of genes responsible for their beneficial properties. Doubling the benevolent genes leads to an increase in agents responsible for curative properties that include fighting cancer. In another instance, scientists at the Kerala Agricultural University (kau) in Thrissur have created GM roots of Ash-wagandha and Jivanti by introducing a gene from a bacteria that causes the roots to grow profusely. This enables it to produce more of the medicinally important compounds. "For the moment, these transgenic herbs are aimed at the allopathic pharma industry that uses plant extracts rather than using them as a whole, like in Ayurveda," clarifies M.G. Purushothama, who worked on Brahmi and Kariyat at rgcb. The transgenic varieties are waiting to be picked up by pharma companies for further research and safety tests. While the GM roots of Ashwagandha and Jivanti are designed to be grown only in labs, kau scientist R. Keshav-achandran says Brahmi and Kariyat will have to be tested further in field conditions. That may have some repercussions for Ayurveda, for any field trial of genetically engineered herbal plants is likely to be controversial as it involves the threat of genetic contamination if precautions are not followed. Civil society groups like Greenpeace and Gene Campaign have argued that field trials haven't respected required safety norms. Likewise, concerned Basmati exporters in India lobbied last year to have GM rice trial locations moved away from traditional Basmati-growing regions to avoid possible genetic contamination of natural varieties. Exporters argued that such trials would destroy India's market share in places like the European Union, which imposed compulsory testing in 2006 on all shipments of long grain rice from the US after GM contamination. But such 'isolation' may be difficult to achieve in Ayurveda as the plants used are often sourced from natural habitats. So, can Ayurveda use genetically engineered crops? Responds S.K. Sharma, advisor at the department of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy in Delhi, "Scientists may pursue R&D on herbal plants but officially GM is not permitted in Ayurveda. Scientists believe in increasing a single positive attribute but Ayurveda insists on using the holistic character of a plant." He, however, adds, "But whether or not we can ever introduce GM into Ayurveda can only be decided on presentation of reliable data about the safety and efficacy of new transgenic crops." An Ayurveda built around GM herbs, obviously, can only come after a wide acceptance of GM food itself.