Scholarly Literature
This is a database of scholarly literature that concentrates currently on natural and engineered selfish genetic elements (gene drives). The latest are shown here.
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A framework for identifying fertility gene targets for mammalian pest controlC. C. Anna, A. Alana, E. Rey, E. Kevin, K. Sebastian, D. Ludovic, C. Jackson, E. C. Samuel, W. M. Philipp and J. G. Neil, bioRxiv, 2023.05.30.542751. 2023.
Fertility-targeted gene drives have been proposed as an ethical genetic approach for managing wild populations of vertebrate pests for public health and conservation benefit. This manuscript introduces a framework to identify and evaluate target gene suitability based on ... |
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An economic evaluation of Wolbachia deployments for dengue control in VietnamH. C. Turner, D. L. Quyen, R. Dias, P. T. Huong, C. P. Simmons and K. L. Anders, PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 17:e0011356. 2023.
INTRODUCTION: Dengue is a major public health challenge and a growing problem due to climate change. The release of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia is a novel form of vector control against dengue. However, there remains a need to ... |
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The optimal strategy of incompatible insect technique (IIT) using Wolbachia and the application to malaria controlT. Matsufuji and S. Seirin-Lee, Journal of Theoretical Biology, 569:111519. 2023.
For decades, techniques to control vector population with low environmental impact have been widely explored in both field and theoretical studies. The incompatible insect technique (IIT) using Wolbachia, based on cytoplasmic incompatibility, is a technique that ... |
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CRISPR-based gene editing of non-homologous end joining factors biases DNA repair pathway choice toward single-strand annealing in Aedes aegyptiK. Chae, J. M. Overcash, C. Dawson, C. Valentin, H. Tsujimoto, K. M. Myles and Z. N. Adelman, Current Research in Biotechnology, 5:100133. 2023.
To maintain genome stability, eukaryotic cells orchestrate DNA repair pathways to process DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) that result from diverse developmental or environmental stimuli. Bias in the selection of DSB repair pathways, either non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) or ... |
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Wolbachia protects Drosophila melanogaster against two naturally occurring and virulent viral pathogensG. Bruner-Montero and F. M. Jiggins, Scientific Reports, 13:8518. 2023.
Wolbachia is a common endosymbiont that can protect insects against viral pathogens. However, whether the antiviral effects of Wolbachia have a significant effect on fitness remains unclear. We have investigated the interaction between Drosophila melanogaster, Wolbachia and two ... |
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Holobiont perspectives on tripartite interactions among microbiota, mosquitoes, and pathogensR. Zheng, Q. Wang, R. Wu, P. N. Paradkar, A. A. Hoffmann and G. H. Wang, ISME, 2023.
Mosquito-borne diseases like dengue and malaria cause a significant global health burden. Unfortunately, current insecticides and environmental control strategies aimed at the vectors of these diseases are only moderately effective in decreasing disease burden. Understanding and ... |
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Adaptation in the face of internal conflict: the paradox of the organism revisitedM. M. Patten, M. A. Schenkel and J. A. Ågren, Biological Reviews, 2023.
The paradox of the organism refers to the observation that organisms appear to function as coherent purposeful entities, despite the potential for within-organismal components like selfish genetic elements and cancer cells to erode them from within. While it is commonly accepted ... |
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Near-infrared imaging for automated tsetse pupae sex sorting in support of the sterile insect techniqueR. Argilés-Herrero, G. Salvador-Herranz, A. G. Parker, M. Zacarés, A. G. Fall, A. M. Gaye, A. Nawaz, P. Takáč, M. J. B. Vreysen and C. J. de Beer, Parasite, 30. 2023.
Tsetse flies are the cyclical vectors of African trypanosomes and one of several methods to manage this vector is the sterile insect technique (SIT). The ability to determine the sex of tsetse pupae with the objective to separate the sexes before adult emergence has been a major ... |
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Transinfected Wolbachia strains induce a complex of cytoplasmic incompatibility phenotypes: Roles of CI factor genesJ. Li, B. Dong, Y. Zhong and Z. X. Li, Environmental Microbiology, 2023.
Wolbachia can modulate the reproductive development of their hosts in multiple modes, and cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) is the most well-studied phenotype. The whitefly Bemisia tabaci is highly receptive to different Wolbachia strains: wCcep strain from the rice moth Corcyra ... |
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Leveraging eco-evolutionary models for gene drive risk assessmentM. A. Combs, A. J. Golnar, J. M. Overcash, A. L. Lloyd, K. R. Hayes, D. A. O’Brochta and K. M. Pepin, Trends in Genetics, 2023.
As development of gene drive systems accelerates and diversifies, predicting outcomes for target populations and the potential for human and environmental risks requires accounting for numerous eco-evolutionary processes.Gene drive dynamic models quantify the influence of ... |
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Leveraging eco-evolutionary models for gene drive risk assessmentM. A. Combs, A. J. Golnar, J. M. Overcash, A. L. Lloyd, K. R. Hayes, D. A. O’Brochta and K. M. Pepin, Trends in Genetics, 2023.
As development of gene drive systems accelerates and diversifies, predicting outcomes for target populations and the potential for human and environmental risks requires accounting for numerous eco-evolutionary processes.Gene drive dynamic models quantify the influence of ... |
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Adversarial interspecies relationships facilitate population suppression by gene drive in spatially explicit modelsY. Liu, W. Teo, H. Yang and J. Champer, Ecology Letters, 2023.
Abstract Suppression gene drives bias their inheritance to spread through a population, potentially eliminating it when they reach high frequency. CRISPR homing suppression drives have already seen success in the laboratory, but several models predict that success may be elusive ... |
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Combined actions of bacteriophage-encoded genes in Wolbachia-induced male lethalityH. Arai, H. Anbutsu, Y. Nishikawa, M. Kogawa, K. Ishii, M. Hosokawa, S. R. Lin, M. Ueda, M. Nakai, Y. Kunimi, T. Harumoto, D. Kageyama, H. Takeyama and M. N. Inoue, iScience, 26:106842. 2023.
Some Wolbachia endosymbionts induce male killing, whereby male offspring of infected females are killed during development; however, the origin and diversity of the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we identified a 76 kbp prophage region specific to ... |
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Gene DrivesD. M. Berube, Pandemics and Resilience, 2023.
A “gene drive” is a version of gene editing—a newer, more precise way to change a DNA (or RNA) sequence; in this case, combining a guide RNA with an enzyme that can make a gene drive takes this to another level, making sure that a new or altered genetic sequence has a ... |
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Editorial: Genetic control of insect pest species—achievements, challenges, and perspectivesI. Häcker, D. Bartsch, A. Choo and F. Marec, Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 11. 2023.
Genetic control is a type ofbiological control and a promising approach to regulate insect pest populations in a species-specific manner. It is based on targeting the reproductive capacity of the target pest species to reduce population size to non-critical levels. The best known ... |
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The boundary problem: Defining and delineating the community in field trials with gene drive organismsN. de Graeff, I. Pirson, R. van der Graaf, A. L. Bredenoord and K. R. Jongsma, Bioethics, 2023.
Despite widespread and worldwide efforts to eradicate vector-borne diseases such as malaria, these diseases continue to have an enormous negative impact on public health. For this reason, scientists are working on novel control strategies, such as gene drive technologies (GDTs). ... |
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B chromosomes reveal a female meiotic drive suppression system in Drosophila melanogasterS. L. Hanlon and R. S. Hawley, Current Biology, 2023.
Selfish genetic elements use a myriad of mechanisms to drive their inheritance and ensure their survival into the next generation, often at a fitness cost to its host.(1)(,)(2) Although the catalog of selfish genetic elements is rapidly growing, our understanding of host drive ... |
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Wolbachia-based strategies for control of agricultural pestsJ. T. Gong, T. P. Li, M. K. Wang and X. Y. Hong, Curr Opin Insect Sci, 101039:10.1016/j.cois.2023.101039. 2023.Wolbachia-based incompatible insect technique (IIT) and pathogen blocking technique (PBT) have been shown to be effective at protecting humans from mosquito-borne diseases in the past decades. Population suppression based on IIT and population replacement based on PBT have become ... |
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Anti-CRISPR Anopheles mosquitoes inhibit gene drive spread under challenging behavioural conditions in large cagesA. Simoni, R. D'Amato, C. Taxiarchi, M. Galardini, A. Trusso, R. Minuz, S. Gilli, A. Somerville, D. Shittu, A. Khalil, R. Galizi and R. Muller, Research Square, 2023.
CRISPR-based gene drives have the potential to spread within a population and are considered as promising vector control tools. A doublesex-targeting gene drive was shown effective to suppress laboratory populations in both small and large cages, and it is considered for field ... |
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A rapidly spreading deleterious aphid endosymbiont that uses horizontal as well as vertical transmissionX. Gu, P. A. Ross, A. Gill, Q. Yang, E. Ansermin, S. Sharma, S. Soleimannejad, K. Sharma, A. Callahan, C. Brown, P. A. Umina, T. N. Kristensen and A. A. Hoffmann, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120:e2217278120. 2023.
Endosymbiotic bacteria that live inside the cells of insects are typically only transmitted maternally and can spread by increasing host fitness and/or modifying reproduction in sexual hosts. Transinfections of Wolbachia endosymbionts are now being used to introduce useful ... |
