Mexico is a center of origin for several economically important plants including maize, cotton, and cocoa. Maize represents more than a food crop, has been declared a biological, cultural, agricultural and economic patrimony, and is linked to the national identity of Mexicans. In this review, we describe the historic and current use of genetically modified plants in Mexico and factors that contributed to the development of the biosafety regulation. We developed a database containing all permit applications received by the government to release genetically modified plants. A temporal and geographical analysis identified the plant species that have been authorized for experimental purposes, pilot programs, or commercial production, the geographic areas where they have been released, and the traits that have been introduced. Results show that Mexico has faced a dual challenge: accepting the benefits of genetically modified plants and their products, while protecting native plant biodiversity.

中文翻译：

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墨西哥授权的转基因植物概况。


墨西哥是玉米、棉花和可可等多种重要经济植物的原产地中心。玉米不仅代表一种粮食作物，还被宣布为生物、文化、农业和经济遗产，并与墨西哥人的民族认同息息相关。在这篇综述中，我们描述了墨西哥转基因植物的历史和当前使用情况以及有助于制定生物安全法规的因素。我们开发了一个数据库，其中包含政府收到的所有释放转基因植物的许可证申请。时间和地理分析确定了已授权用于实验目的、试点计划或商业生产的植物物种、已释放的地理区域以及已引入的性状。结果表明，墨西哥面临双重挑战：接受转基因植物及其产品的好处，同时保护本土植物生物多样性。