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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Sterile Insect Technique Programme against Mediterranean Fruit Fly in the Valencian Community (Spain)
Tags: Fruit fly, Genetic biocontrol, Pest management, Sterile insect technique (SIT)I. Plá, J. García de Oteyza, C. Tur, M. Á. Martínez, M. C. Laurín, E. Alonso, M. Martínez, Á. Martín, R. Sanchis, M. C. Navarro, M. T. Navarro, R. Argilés, M. Briasco, Ó. Dembilio and V. Dalmau, Insects, 12. 2021.
The Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wied.), is an endemic pest in fruit-growing areas of the Spanish Mediterranean coast. In the Valencian Community, it represents a serious problem in the cultivation of citrus and numerous species of fruit, such as peach, cherry, ...
Stable isotopes for reliable identification of wild and mass-reared Queensland fruit flies in sterile insect technique programs
Tags: Genetic biocontrol, Sterile insect technique (SIT)B. Mainali, A. S. Andrew, P. W. Taylor and P. Rempoulakis, Journal of Pest Science, 14. 2021.
Queensland fruit fly is one of the most economically important horticultural pests in Australia. Sterile insect technique (SIT) is now being reconsidered and upscaled to combat this pest so reliable discrimination of released sterile Q-flies from wild flies in monitoring traps is ...
Living in the endosymbiotic world of Wolbachia: A centennial review
Tags: Cytoplasmic incompatibility, Genetic biocontrol, WolbachiaR. Kaur, J. D. Shropshire, K. L. Cross, B. Leigh, A. J. Mansueto, V. Stewart, S. R. Bordenstein and S. R. Bordenstein, Cell Host and Microbe, 29:879-893. 2021.
The most widespread intracellular bacteria in the animal kingdom are maternally inherited endosymbionts of the genus Wolbachia. Their prevalence in arthropods and nematodes worldwide and stunning arsenal of parasitic and mutualistic adaptations make these bacteria a biological ...
Genetic Manipulation of Ticks: A Paradigm Shift in Tick and Tick-Borne Diseases Research
Tags: CRISPR, Gene editing, Other arthropodsA. Nuss, A. Sharma and M. Gulia-Nuss, Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, 11:7. 2021.
Ticks are obligate hematophagous arthropods that are distributed worldwide and are one of the most important vectors of pathogens affecting humans and animals. Despite the growing burden of tick-borne diseases, research on ticks has lagged behind other arthropod vectors, such as ...
Mechanistically comparing reproductive manipulations caused by selfish chromosomes and bacterial symbionts
Tags: Chromosomal drive, Cytoplasmic incompatibility, Selfish genetic elements, WolbachiaE. Dalla Benetta, O. S. Akbari and P. M. Ferree, Heredity, 126:707-716. 2021.
Insects naturally harbor a broad range of selfish agents that can manipulate their reproduction and development, often leading to host sex ratio distortion. Such effects directly benefit the spread of the selfish agents. These agents include two broad groups: bacterial symbionts ...
The legal regulation of gene drive technologies
Tags: Biodiversity/Conservation, Ethics, Gene drive, Governance, Policy, Regulation, Synthetic biologyC. Elves, Univeristy of Oxford, 2021.
Gene drive technologies purport to provide a panacea and yet in doing so present unprecedented risks that threaten to change, potentially irreversibly, the way in which we live in the world. Gene drive technologies raise questions about what ends societies ought to seek for their ...
Modeling and analysis of the implementation of the Wolbachia incompatible and sterile insect technique for mosquito population suppression.
Tags: Dengue, Genetic biocontrol, Incompatible insect technique, Mosquitoes, Population suppression, WolbachiaB. Zheng, J. S. Yu and J. Li, Siam Journal on Applied Mathematics, 81:718-740. 2021.
Mathematical analysis may offer guidance in designing effective mass release strategies for the area-wide application of this Wolbachia incompatible and sterile insect technique in the future. The two most crucial concerns in designing release strategies are how often and in what ...
Selection of Sites for Field Trials of Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes with Gene Drive
Tags: Africa, Anopheles, Field trials, Gene drive synthetic, Genetically modified mosquitoes, Governance, Malaria, Policy, Population modification/replacement, RegulationG. C. Lanzaro, M. Campos, M. Crepeau, A. Cornel, A. Estrada, H. Gripkey, Z. Haddad, A. Kormos, S. Palomares and W. Sharpee, bioRxiv, 2021.04.28.441877. 2021.
Novel malaria control strategies using genetically engineered mosquitoes (GEMs) are on the horizon. Population modification is one approach wherein mosquitoes are engineered with genes rendering them refractory to the malaria parasite coupled with a low-threshold, Cas9-based gene ...
“Maskandi experience”: exploring the use of a cultural song for community engagement in preparation for a pilot Sterile Insect Technique release programme for malaria vector control in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa 2019
Tags: Africa, Anopheles, Genetic biocontrol, Malaria, Sterile insect technique (SIT)P. N. Manana, S. Jewett, J. Zikhali, D. Dlamini, N. Mabaso, Z. Mlambo, R. Ngobese and G. Munhenga, Malaria Journal, 20:11. 2021.
Background An assessment of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) as a complementary malaria vector control tool, is at an advanced stage in South Africa. The technique involves the release of laboratory-reared sterilized male mosquitoes of the major malaria vector Anopheles ...
Does Gene Technology Offer Potential to Wipe Out Malaria?
Tags: Gene drive synthetic, Genetically modified mosquitoes, MalariaAnonymous, AFIDEP, 2021.
The persisting high numbers of Malaria deaths and illnesses mean that the current tools will not get us to zero Malaria. For this reason, experts have continued to explore new tools for Malaria elimination. The gene drive technology is one of the tools being explored for Malaria ...
A functional bacteria-derived restriction modification system in the mitochondrion of a heterotrophic protist
Tags: Selfish genetic elements, Toxin-antidoteD. A.-O. Milner, J. A.-O. Wideman, C. A.-O. Stairs, C. D. Dunn and T. A.-O. Richards, PLoS Biology, 2021.
The overarching trend in mitochondrial genome evolution is functional streamlining coupled with gene loss. Therefore, gene acquisition by mitochondria is considered to be exceedingly rare. Selfish elements in the form of self-splicing introns occur in many organellar genomes, but ...
Selfish chromosomal drive shapes recent centromeric histone evolution in monkeyflowers
Tags: Chromosomal drive, Genetics, Transmission distortionF. R. Finseth, T. C. Nelson and L. Fishman, PLOS Genetics, 17:e1009418. 2021.
Centromeres must mediate faithful chromosomal transmission during cell division and sexual reproduction, but both the DNA and protein components of centromeres diverge rapidly across species. The selfish centromere model argues that this paradoxical diversity results from a ...
Development of Sterile Insect Technique for Control of the European Grapevine Moth, Lobesia botrana, in Urban Areas of Chile
Tags: Genetic biocontrol, Mosquito husbandry, Sterile insect technique (SIT)G. S. Simmons, M. C. Salazar Sepulveda, E. A. Fuentes Barrios, M. Idalsoaga Villegas, R. E. Medina Jimenez, A. R. Garrido Jerez, R. Henderson and H. Donoso Riffo, Insects, 12. 2021.
The European grapevine moth, a Palearctic pest, was first detected in the Americas in 2008. Its establishment in Chile presented production and export issues for grapes and other fruits, and a national control campaign was launched. Urban areas next to agricultural production ...
CRISPR-Cas and Its Wide-Ranging Applications: From Human Genome Editing to Environmental Implications, Technical Limitations, Hazards and Bioethical Issues
Tags: Ethics, Gene drive synthetic, Policy, Regulation, Risk assessmentR. Piergentili, A. Del Rio, F. Signore, F. U. Ronchi, E. Marinelli and S. Zaami, Cells, 10:24. 2021.
The CRISPR-Cas system is a powerful tool for in vivo editing the genome of most organisms, including man. During the years this technique has been applied in several fields, such as agriculture for crop upgrade and breeding including the creation of allergy-free foods, for ...
Estimates of the population size and dispersal range of Anopheles arabiensis in Northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: implications for a planned pilot programme to release sterile male mosquitoes
Tags: Africa, Anopheles, Genetic biocontrol, Sterile insect technique (SIT)M. L. Kaiser, O. R. Wood, D. Damiens, B. D. Brooke, L. L. Koekemoer and G. Munhenga, Parasites and Vectors, 14:18. 2021.
The Anopheles gambiae complex and An. funestus group species made up the majority of wild collections along with other anophelines. The An. arabiensis population size was estimated to be between 550 and 9500 males per hectare depending on time of year, weather conditions and ...
Engineered sex ratio distortion by X-shredding in the global agricultural pest Ceratitis capitata
Tags: Fruit fly, Gene drive synthetic, X chromosomeA. Meccariello, F. Krsticevic, R. Colonna, G. Del Corsano, B. Fasulo, P. A. Papathanos and N. Windbichler, BMC Biology, 19:78. 2021.
Genetic sex ratio distorters are systems aimed at effecting a bias in the reproductive sex ratio of a population and could be applied for the area-wide control of sexually reproducing insects that vector disease or disrupt agricultural production. One example of such a system ...
The Insect Pest Control Laboratory of the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme: Ten Years (2010–2020) of Research and Development, Achievements and Challenges in Support of the Sterile Insect Technique
Tags: Incompatible insect technique, Mosquito husbandry, Sterile insect technique (SIT)M. J. B. Vreysen, A. M. M. Abd-Alla, K. Bourtzis, J. Bouyer, C. Caceres, C. de Beer, D. Oliveira Carvalho, H. Maiga, W. Mamai, K. Nikolouli, H. Yamada and R. Pereira, Insects, 12. 2021.
The Joint FAO/IAEA Centre (formerly called Division) of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture was established in 1964 and its accompanying laboratories in 1961. One of its subprograms deals with insect pest control, and has the mandate to develop and implement the sterile ...
Introduction of a cold sensitivity-conferring mutation into the RTA-Bddsx hybrid system of Bactrocera dorsalis for establishment of a thermally controllable homozygous line
Tags: Fruit fly, Gene editing, Genetic biocontrol, Sterile insect technique (SIT)S. M. Dai, C. Y. Huang and C. Chang, Pest Management Science, 7. 2021.
BACKGROUND For efficient control of the economically important fruit pest Bactrocera dorsalis, a hybrid system combining ricin toxicity and sex-related alternative splicing of the doublesex gene has been developed. This system exhibits the expected female-specific lethal effect; ...
Evidence for natural hybridization and novel Wolbachia strain superinfections in the Anopheles gambiae complex from Guinea
Tags: Anopheles, Genetic biocontrol, Mosquitoes, Population modification/replacement, WolbachiaC. L. Jeffries, C. Cansado-Utrilla, A. H. Beavogui, C. Stica, E. K. Lama, M. Kristan, S. R. Irish and T. Walker, Royal Society Open Science, 8:18. 2021.
Wolbachia, a widespread bacterium which can influence mosquito-borne pathogen transmission, has recently been detected within Anopheles (An.) species that are malaria vectors in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although studies have reported Wolbachia strains in the An. gambiae complex, ...
CRISPR-mediated knock-in of transgenes into the malaria vector Anopheles funestus
Tags: Anopheles, Gene drive synthetic, Gene editing, Malaria, MosquitoesC. Quinn, A. Anthousi, C. Wondji and T. Nolan, bioRxiv, 2021.03.31.437891. 2021.
We describe herein an optimised transformation system based on the germline delivery of CRISPR components that allows efficient cleavage of a previously validated genomic site and preferential repair of these cut sites via homology-directed repair (HDR), which allows introduction ...

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