Gene drives, species complexes, and the risks of collateral damage
Gene drives, species complexes, and the risks of collateral damage
Tags: Ecology, Gene drive, Genetic engineering, Regulation, Risk and safety, Risk assessmentC. Boëte, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 122. 2025.
The development of engineered gene drive systems continues to garner significant interest. Theoretically, these systems could spread traits in a target species (an approach known as population replacement) or eliminate a population within a few generations (population suppression). Some researchers have promoted this disruptive technology for potential applications ranging from public health (e.g., malaria control) to conservation (e.g., protection of endangered species, elimination of invasive ones) to agriculture (e.g., pest control).
But in the case of a gene drive intended to target a specific species, the risk of affecting non-target species must be taken into account, and researchers must strive to minimize collateral damage. Hybridization between a target and a non-target species could result in unintended gene flow, as could the horizontal transfer of the gene drive cassette (1). While some researchers have proposed the “Target Species Complex” (TSC) framework to account for off-target effects, the concept is unlikely to provide a safeguard. Rather, it risks reframing collateral impacts as intentional outcomes, narrowing, rather than broadening, the scope of ecological and regulatory considerations. Researchers must therefore make sure to incorporate risk assessments that take into account the effects on numerous species and make a concerted effort to understand the downstream effects.
