EPA Grants First Permit to Test Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
EPA Grants First Permit to Test Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
Tags: Aedes, Genetically modified mosquitoes, Oxitec, Policy, Risk assessmentAdam Allington, Bloomberg Law, 2020.
The EPA on Friday granted permission for genetically engineered mosquitoes to be released into the Florida Keys and around Houston to see if they can help limit the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses.
British biotech company Oxitec Ltd was granted an experimental use permit to release a genetically engineered type of the mosquito species Aedes aegypti, which is a known vector of Zika virus and viruses that cause yellow fever and dengue fever, the Environmental Protection Agency office of Chemical Safety and Pollution announced.
Oxitec must get state and local approval before it can start field testing. But if granted, testing will take place over a two-year period in Monroe County, Fla., starting this summer, and in Harris County, Texas, beginning in 2021.
Oxitec says its “2nd Generation Friendly” Aedes aegypti carries a gene that prevents female offspring from surviving, allowing for male-only production.
When genetically engineered males are released into the field, they mate with wild female mosquitoes. With only male mosquitoes able to survive, the population decreases as the gene spreads, the company says.
