EPA assessing risk of releasing genetically engineered mosquitoes
EPA assessing risk of releasing genetically engineered mosquitoes
Tags: North America, Policy, Regulation, Risk and safety, Risk assessmentGary West, Capital Press, 2025.
The Environmental Protection Agency has convened a scientific panel to help assess whether genetically engineered mosquitoes could pose a risk to humans. In a paper released Aug. 21, the EPA said that as science advances it expects more proposals to control mosquitoes by releasing males with an implanted trait that prevents their offspring from surviving. Male mosquitoes don’t bite humans, only female mosquitoes bite. But if a female mosquito picks up the genetic flaw, such as a new protein, the protein could be passed onto humans, according to the EPA.
The EPA expects the number of genetically engineered female mosquitoes to be low, and it hasn’t determined whether the proteins would be hazardous to humans. But it’s looking to identify the best way to confirm a female mosquito’s salvia doesn’t have novel proteins. The test will help the EPA to assess the risk of exposure to humans. “Female mosquitoes bite humans as a means of reproductive survival and, as a result, this interaction results in a plausible pathway of exposure to novel proteins,” the EPA stated.
