Gene Drive in the News
A curated collection of articles from the popular press
Changing mosquito genes, spreading bacteria: Science sees success vs dengue
23421C. E. Baclig, INQUIRER.NET, 2022-08-10 08:51:03.
Wolbachia, according to WMP, are extremely common bacteria that occur naturally in 50 percent of insect species, including mosquitoes, fruit flies, moths, dragonflies, and butterflies. Aedes aegypti or dengue-carrying mosquitoes, however, do not normally carry Wolbachia. Studies showed that the bacteria make it difficult for viruses, such as dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever, to reproduce inside the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes—making the mosquitoes much less likely to spread viruses when they bite people. “This means that when Aedes aegypti mosquitoes carry natural Wolbachia bacteria, the transmission of viruses like dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever is reduced,” the organization explained. The WMP breeds Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes and releases them into areas hit by mosquito-borne diseases. This means there will be “less risk of disease in communities where Wolbachia is established in the local mosquito population.”
Release the Beast? Genetically modified mosquitos for diease control
23351G. Ferrante, Palatinate, 2022-07-29 08:31:10.
The company Oxitec is an example how genetic technologies can be used in managing unwanted species in a sustainable way.Oxitec jumped to the headlines in March with permits being issued by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow the release of around 2.4 billion male mosquitos over two years in Florida and California. This is part of an expansion of their existing trial of releasing a genetically modified mosquito species in a bid to suppress the species Aedes aegypti in the USA. Aedes aegypti also known as the yellow fever mosquito has a main role in spreading debilitating diseases such as Dengue, Chikungunya, Yellow Fever and Zika virus in many countries. Aedes aegypti also is an invasive species in many subtropical regions, spanning from the south-eastern US to the Pacific Islands and South-East Asia. Oxitec’s signature technology involves the use of a ‘self-limiting’ gene which only activates in female mosquitos after reproduction.
What do we mean by “Target Organism” in Target Malaria’s gene drive research?
23336J. B. Connolly, Target Malaria, 2022-07-27 08:46:32.
In the wild and in laboratory settings, sibling mosquito species can successfully mate to produce viable offspring, regardless of whether they are vectors or not. Importantly, females, but not males, of these offspring can be fertile. Nonetheless, the likelihood of finding such hybrid mosquitoes in field samples varies greatly between different combinations of species. According to some field studies, typically, only about 0.1% of mosquito collected in the wild could be An. gambiae s.s./An. coluzzii hybrids. In addition, some species that do not overlap geographically, and therefore would not come into direct contact, cannot produce hybrids in the field. This includes An. melas, which is found along the coast of West Africa, and An. bwambae, which is restricted to hot springs in the Toro District of Uganda. This means that the gene drive could eventually transfer to all sibling species of the complex, both by direct hybridisation between geographically-overlapping species and, indirectly, by transferring from one species to another overlapping ones like stepping-stones until the gene drive was transferred to all species of the complex, including to the likes of An. melas and An. bwambae
“Selfish Genetic Elements” – Supergene Wreaks Havoc in a Genome
23302University of Rochester, SciTechDaily, 2022-07-25 07:37:40.
“Selfish genetic elements” litter the human genome. They do not seem to benefit their hosts but instead seek only to propagate themselves. These selfish genetic elements can wreak havoc. For example, they can distort sex ratios, impair fertility, cause harmful mutations, and even potentially cause population extinction. Biologists have for the first time used population genomics to shed light on the evolution and consequences of a selfish genetic element known as Segregation Distorter (SD). These researchers at the University of Rochester, include Amanda Larracuente, an associate professor of biology, and Daven Presgraves, a University Dean’s Professor of Biology. In a paper published recently in the journal eLife, the scientists report that SD has caused dramatic changes in chromosome organization and genetic diversity.
Novel gene drive based on eliciting piRNA biogenesis in insect pests
23235C. Henderson and B. Christina, Rutgers Research, 2022-07-14 06:56:49.
Rutgers researchers have developed a potential permanent solution to persistent pest control issues by developing a system for genetic modification which could reduce the transmission of vector borne diseases (like malaria) from their insect vectors, or to establish expression of a desirable trait such as Bacillus thuringiensis susceptibility in crop pests. The inventors have demonstrated their solution through a transgenic construct that expresses an anti-malaria peptide in Anopheles gambiae alongside piRNAs which are designed to direct silencing towards a host gene required for reproduction. If the host silences the genetic construct, this silencing will be directed towards the host gene resulting in infertility. This platform can be used to create a gene drive that can prevent resistance formation and allow for rapid spread of a trait within a population
Genetically-enhanced biocontrols can help fight large invasive mammals
23157Pensoft Publishers, Science Daily, 2022-07-08 09:49:27.
A team of researchers from the University of Adelaide developed a mathematical model able to simulate the impact of gene drives on mammal populations at a landscape scale. Published in the open-access NeoBiotajournal, their study is the first to estimate the time it would take to eradicate long-lived alien mammals. Using CRISPR-Cas9 technology, the simulated gene drive relies on "molecular scissors" inserted into the Y-chromosome that target and slice up the X-chromosome at the right time during meiosis, so that only Y-chromosome carrying sperms are functional and can successfully fertilize the egg. In this way, the drive carrying males should only produce sons that also carry the molecular scissors on their Y-chromosome. Over multiple generations, females will become rarer and produce fewer offspring; as a result, the population size will fall.
Gene drives and Africa’s battle against malaria
23154Annonymous, Africa Verified, 2022-07-08 09:43:10.
As malaria cases rise, and the effectiveness of current methods begins to fall, the WHO’s target of reducing the global malaria burden by 90% by 2030 will not be met. It is critical for new and resilient treatment, prevention, and control methods to be developed and integrated into current strategies. Target Malaria is a not-for-profit research consortium aiming to develop ‘cost-effective and sustainable genetic technologies to modify mosquitoes and reduce malaria transmission’ that would work alongside current anti-malaria efforts. They are pioneering research into genetically programmed mosquitoes, which when released into the wild to mate, reproduce offspring that either produce fewer female mosquitoes or are unable to transmit malaria parasites.
Do Australians support genetic technology to control feral animals?
23095E. Phiddian, COSMOS, 2022-07-02 07:43:33.
Synthetic biology and genetic technology could be a safer, more humane way of curbing invasive species. Feral cat populations, for instance, could be controlled by preventing them from breeding. But there’s no point trying a new technology it if it doesn’t have public support – so does synthetic biology pass the pub test? According to a report from the CSIRO, it just might. Their survey of nearly 4,000 Australians finds that most support the idea of using gene drives on feral cats.“This particular study builds on our public acceptability work over the last three to four years on synthetic biology solutions to significant national challenges,” says Dr Aditi Mankad, co-author of the report and a researcher at CSIRO Land & Water’s Sustainability Pathways Program.
Breeding out the feral cat problem
23097S. Schmidt, ECOS, 2022-06-30 07:48:16.
While feral cats have only existed as part of Australia’s ecosystem for the last 200 or so years, they’ve left a destructive mark on our landscape. They’ve contributed to a growing list of Australian native animals that have become threatened or extinct in that time. Today, feral cats (Felis catus) are rampant in all parts of Australia, covering 99% of Australia’s total land area. That includes ecosystems from deserts to forests and grasslands, and even many of our offshore islands. Though they might share their species name and genome with their domestic counterparts, that’s where their similarity ends, explains Biosecurity Research Director at CSIRO, Dr Raghu Sathyamurthy. “Feral cats are opportunistic predators. They’re one of the most significant threats to our native species including small mammals, birds and reptiles,” says Dr Sathyamurthy.
The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District & Oxitec Announce Launch of Next Phase of Ground-Breaking Project
23093Oxitec, Oxitec, 2022-06-30 07:38:27.
In a continuation of the FKMCD-Oxitec Mosquito Project, Oxitec and FKMCD announced that a new phase of the project (“Pilot D”) will be initiated on or after July 7th, 2022. This phase of the project will examine single-point releases of Oxitec’s male mosquitoes. In March of this year the EPA granted an extension of the Experimental Use Permit (EUP) for the continuation of this pilot project. Following this national-level approval, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS), reviewed and approved Oxitec’s state-level permit applications. The 2022 project launched with Pilot B during the week of May 9th, with the placement of Oxitec’s just-add-water mosquito boxes on private property of volunteer residents in three release areas, all on Vaca Key. Untreated comparison sites are monitored with mosquito traps on Key Colony Beach and Vaca Key.
Australians open to using genetic technology to manage feral cats
23086CSIRO, MIRAGE, 2022-06-30 07:20:05.
New genetic technologies could help address the rise of invasives through a number of ways, one of which is called gene drive. Gene drive can determine the sex of offspring, reducing the number of animals able to reproduce, and therefore over time driving down populations. Researchers from CSIRO surveyed more than 3,800 people across Australia to understand public perceptions of using gene drive on feral cats. The research found 86 per cent of people were at least moderately supportive for the local implementation of gene drive technology to manage invasive feral cat species in their local area.
Gene Drives: A Potentially New Weapon Against Mosquitoes
22905M. Sherman, Times Union Online, 2022-06-13 06:36:32.
Scientists have studied gene drives for more than 50 years, and to most of us this has been a well-kept secret. The development of a powerful genome editing tool in 2012, CRISPR/Cas9,1 led to recent breakthroughs in gene drive research that built on that half century’s worth of knowledge, and stimulated new discussions of the potential applications and implications of gene drive technologies. Just prior to the beginning of this study and since the committee was first convened, scientists published four proofs of concept — one in yeast, one in fruit flies, and two in different species of mosquitoes — that demonstrate the successful development of gene drives in the laboratory, at least in these organisms.Proposed applications for gene-drive modified organisms for basic research, conservation, agriculture, public health and other purposes will likely continue to expand as gene editing tools become more refined. Gene-drive modified organisms are on the horizon. With mosquitoes, the gene drive interferes with the insect’s ability to reproduce. It wiped out captive populations in eight or 12 generations. The first experimental release could be rolled out in Burkina Faso, Mali, Ghana or Uganda.
Mosquito control to save Hawaiian honeycreepers does not involve GMOs
22859Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, 2022-06-08 08:42:00.
Despite misinformation circulating on social media, the importation of “incompatible-male” mosquitoes to control populations of wild mosquitoes and to save four native bird species from extinction, does not involve the use of any genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or genetically engineered (GE) organisms. On Thursday, the Plant and Animal Advisory Committee of the Dept. of Agriculture will consider listing three species of mosquitoes on its Restricted Species List A. The listing would allow the importation of three species of mosquitoes, all of which are already present in Hawai‘i. One of these, the Southern House Mosquito (Culex quinquefasciatus) isresponsible for sharp declines in the populations of many honeycreeper species on Kaua‘i, Maui, and Hawai‘i Island. The other two species – Yellow Fever Mosquito (Aedes aegypti) and Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus) – transmit human diseases.
Who decides whether to use gene drives against malaria-carrying mosquitoes?
22730T. H. Saey, ScienceNews, 2022-06-03 08:12:18.
The gene drive interferes with the insects’ ability to reproduce. It wiped out captive populations of mosquitoes in eight to 12 generations (SN: 10/27/18, p. 6) in a small lab study. In 2021, the technology worked in the large cages in Terni, Italy, too. Within as little as five to 10 years, this gene drive could be ready to test in the wild. The first experimental release could be rolled out in Burkina Faso, Mali, Ghana or Uganda. In those locations, researchers are working with a nonprofit research consortium called Target Malaria to develop the gene drive carriers along with other genetically engineered mosquitoes to fight malaria. This research is driven by the idea that every tool available must be used to fight malaria, which sickened close to 241 million people in 2020 and killed 670,000 worldwide, mostly in Africa. Children 5 years old and younger accounted for about 80 percent of the continent’s malaria deaths, the World Health Organization says. Because of malaria’s huge toll, large investments have been made to fight the disease, yielding preventive drugs, insecticide-treated bed nets and even malaria vaccines — one was recently recommended for use in sub-Saharan Africa (SN: 12/18/21 & 1/1/22, p. 32). These efforts are helping. But mosquitoes are developing resistance to insecticides, and some anti-malaria drugs may no longer work well.
Unfolding the Next Frontier of Innovation in Malaria: The Way Forward
22699ETHealthWorld, ET Healthworld, 2022-05-30 14:53:17.
Malaria innovation is on the verge of a challenging yet exciting frontier. Therefore, to ramp up current innovatins and expand effective therapeutic and prevenitive methods, the governments, international organizations, and the private sector must work together. Additionally, malaria eradication calls for multiple innovative approaches.
Genetically modified mosquitoes released to cull population
R. Goodall, The Boar, 2022-05-24 08:46:12.Mosquito numbers are on the rise in the USA, largely down to the warming climate – and as they spread, the risk of disease spreads with them. But scientists have come up with an interesting approach to solving this problem, involving bioengineering. An experiment has been underway since April 2021 in the Florida Keys, with biotechnology firm Oxitec releasing nearly five million engineered mosquitoes – it has now concluded, and the results are currently looking positive. Is this a potentially viable way to deal with virus-carrying mosquitoes? California was not historically home to the mosquito species Aedes aegypti (it traditionally thrived in the Gulf states), but it has established itself in recent years. It almost certainly travelled to California in cargo, and it has now colonised places like Los Angeles County. As the climate continuously warms, the mosquitoes are expected to multiply and spread in these temperate regions, and this brings the potential for disease outbreaks – the females bite for blood meals, but can also spread diseases like dengue fever, yellow fever, and Zika in the process. This mosquito study is designed to curb the threat of mosquitoes, and intended to prove that Aedes aegypti populations can be repressed by modifying the animals.
Gene Drives: The advanced science fiction technology used to fight malaria mosquitoes explained
22563Anonymous, NewsBeezer, 2022-05-23 08:42:27.
Scientists are using the most advanced form of genetic engineering to eradicate a population of malaria-carrying mosquitoes by rendering the females infertile. Scientists introduced a lab-tweaked gene (a gene created using Gene Drive) into an organism that automatically replicates itself and targets a specific natural gene to destroy it. The potential of the gene drive was explored back in 2003 by Austin Burt, a professor at Imperial College London. Burt studied “selfish genes” that can copy themselves into a specific target DNA sequence. As research continues to develop, Burt said this technology has great potential, for example it could be used to eliminate a population of malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
The sci-fi technology tackling malarial mosquitos
22560Anonymous, The Star, 2022-05-23 08:30:39.
Environmental campaigner Liz O'Neill doesn't mince her words about gene drives - the next generation of genetic modification (GM) technology. "It is extremely worrying," says the director of UK anti-GM pressure group, GM Freeze. "To release something that has been specifically created in a laboratory in order to outfight nature, and spread without exception within wild populations, is extraordinary arrogant. "And once the genie is out of the bottle, you cannot put it back in." The way gene drives work sounds like something from a science fiction novel, but they are already being used in laboratory tests. It is complicated stuff, but here is a simple explanation.
What role can gene editing play in predator control? And are we ready to accept it?
22727K. Green, Stuff, 2022-05-16 08:07:14.
The once-forbidden concept of gene editing for predator control is back on the table after two projects receivedGovernment funding. Despite advances overseas, experts are worried research in New Zealand will never make it out of the lab, with no plans to change current restrictive laws. Appetite for gene editing has always been low among the New Zealand public. In 1999, 20,000 people protested in Auckland alone, marching down Auckland’s Queen St calling for a ban on genetically engineered crops. Gene editing joined nuclear-free as a hallmark of clean, green New Zealand. However last month, the crown entity responsible for pest control, Predator Free 2050, announced investment of $6.7 million into research projects, including $2.25m to investigate whether recent overseas advances in producing mice of only one sex could be adapted for rats, and $200,000 to explore stoat breeding genetics, and whether that could be used for control.
Importation of the non gene drive genetically modified male bias mosquito strain into Burkina Faso
22496A. Diabate, Target Malaria, 2022-05-11 07:37:11.
On March 16 and 21, the team at the Institut de Recherche en Sciences de la Santé (IRSS), Target Malaria’s partner institution in Burkina Faso, received packages containing live genetically modified mosquito eggs from Italy. The National Biosafety Agency (ANB) officers were at the airport to inspect the packages. The eggs are of non gene drive genetically modified male bias mosquitoes. It is another strain of genetically modified mosquitoes, compared to the sterile male strain imported in 2016 and released in 2019. This male bias strain does not carry the gene drive technology. The mosquito is fertile and it is genetically modified to produce mainly male offspring (up to 95% in the laboratory). The male bias strain is not a vector control tool. The purpose of this phase is to understand this new fertile strain, develop capacity, train Target Malaria teams and engage with regulatory authorities and stakeholders.
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