Gene Drive Technology in the News
Genetically-modified possums and all-in-one trapping machines: funding for new predator-free studies
18787A. Allott, stuff, 2021-09-24 13:32:23.
Research into possum genes and creating an all-in-one predator detecting, luring, and trapping machine are among a handful of projects to receive new funding to help bring them into reality. Predator Free 2050 has awarded $2.4 million in Jobs for Nature funding to six postgraduate and post-doctoral researchers from Otago, Canterbury, Lincoln and Auckland universities. University of Otago researcher Alana Alexander, who is trying to discover which genes are important for possums’ reproduction and survival, is one of them. “Gene drives seem very exciting, but they’re a genie in a bottle. We don’t really want possums in New Zealand, but they are part of the ecosystem in Australia, so making sure it’s contained would be really important.” Alexander said she wants people to understand the risks and benefits, so they can give informed consent when thinking about pest control down the line.
Weltnaturschutzunion sucht Position
18803Anonymous, Informationsdienst Gentechnik, 2021-09-22 19:07:43.
Die Weltnaturschutzunion IUCN will in den nächsten drei Jahren eine breite interne Diskussion führen, ob Gentechnik und Gene Drives im Naturschutz eingesetzt werden sollen. Mit diesem Beschluss ist der Versuch gentechnikfreundlicher Organisationen, mit Artenschutz-Argumenten neuen gentechnischen Verfahren die Tür zu öffnen, vorerst abgewehrt. Der 1948 gegründeten International Union for Conservation of Nature gehören über 1300 staatliche und nichtstaatliche Naturschutzorganisationn aus aller Welt an. Sie trafen sich Mitte September in Marseille zu ihrem Weltnaturschutzkongress und verabschiedeten dabei mit der Resolution Nummer 75 auch einen Fahrplan, um zu einer „IUCN-Politik zur synthetischen Biologie in Bezug auf den Naturschutz“ zu gelangen. Der Begriff synthetische Biologie umfasst dabei alle gentechnischen Verfahren, mit denen biologische Systeme künstlich konstruiert oder umgestaltet werden.
Calling the latest gene technologies ‘natural’ is a semantic distraction — they must still be regulated
18752J. A. Heinemann, D. J. Paull, S. Walker and B. Kurenbach, The Conversation, 2021-09-22 13:41:22.
Legislators around the world are being asked to reconsider how to regulate the latest developments in gene technology, genome editing and gene silencing. Both the European Court of Justice and the New Zealand High Court have ruled that genome editing techniques should remain under the regulations specific to genetically modified organisms. But a few other countries, including Australia, have exempted some uses of these techniques from their regulations, based on similarities to what occurs in nature. The main argument is that the biochemical processes of editing are like the processes that cause natural mutations. The “equivalent to nature” narrative blurs the boundary between natural processes and technology.
New report demands moratorium on gene drives
18792GM Watch, GM Watch, 2021-09-21 13:49:44.
To help the public understand what's at stake, the Germany-based NGO Save Our Seeds (SOS) has published a report, "Gene Drives: The New Dimension of Genetic Engineering", which can be downloaded as a pdf document. The report provides a scientifically founded overview of how gene drive systems work, their possible areas of application, and the scientific discussion about their risks. It summarises the status of legislation and regulation at the German, European and global levels and recommends urgent political measures. The report explains how gene drives could be used in agriculture – research is focused on controlling pests and weeds and reversing the herbicide resistance in weeds that was caused and exacerbated by the spread of GM herbicide-tolerant crops. Not coincidentally, the report also notes that gene drives could be employed as bioweapons – for example, to eradicate beneficial insects in a region. The report points out, "The US military‘s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is one of the largest funders of gene drive research and is financially involved in almost every gene drive research project."
Gene Drive Organisms: A new dimension of genetic engineering
18790V. Henn and M. Imken, Save Our Seeds, 2021-09-21 13:42:53.
Enabled by new genetic engineering techniques such as CRISPR/Cas9, so-called gene drives have been developed in recent years that enable humans to spread new genes throughout the genome of wild animal populations. Gene drives force the inheritance of newly introduced genes to be inherited by all offspring, even if this lowers the survival chances of the affected species. In the most extreme case, gene drive technology could drive an entire species to extinction or replace wild populations with genetically modified organisms.
Malaria and the future of mosquito control
18712E. Gonzalez Fernandez, CATALYST, 2021-09-18 14:01:52.
Focusing on mosquito population control, new strategies based on genetic approaches have emerged with the premise of being more eco-friendly. The aim is to not harm the environment or affect other animals since they will only target a specific mosquito species. Genetic control strategies depend on the introduction of an inheritable trait into the wild type population. There are two main outcomes, the suppression, or the replacement of the insect population. In the first one, the new trait leads to a reduction of their population. In the second one, the existing mosquito population is replaced with mosquitoes that have the new characteristic, making the mosquito, for example, unable to transmit the pathogen (refractoriness), the latter doesn’t reduce the number of mosquitoes in the area. The discovery of CRISPR/Cas9, recently awarded the Nobel Prize, has opened an incredible path in genetics and is the fundamental pillar for the new strategies under development for mosquito control. Specifically, the so-called gene drive systems benefit from the CRISPR/Cas9 technology. These gene drive systems aim to spread the new trait into the population in a super-Mendelian way. It means that the gene drive encourages unbalanced inheritance in favour of the new trait, so the new trait is passed on to off-spring so the new would make the ‘old’ disappear in a short period of time. And, as previously mentioned, these could be by reducing or replacing
Scientists use gene editing tool to target mosquito-spread disease
18650Medical Research Council, Phys Org, 2021-09-13 20:12:56.
Advances in genome editing have allowed the development of genetic insect control methods, which could be highly effective and are species-specific. The results have been published in Scientific Reports. Scientists showed that a method involving a gene editing tool called CRISPR/Cas9 could be used to successfully introduce a gene for a fluorescent protein into the genome of southern house mosquitoes. The gene could be passed on to the next generation through mating. This is a vital component of generating genetic pest management tools. It will allow the desired traits (such as the inability to spread a disease or produce fertile offspring) to be spread throughout a population. The inserted gene produces red fluorescence proteins so that mosquitoes with one or more edited gene fluoresce red. Scientists targeted an eye color gene for the insertion site of the fluorescence gene so mosquitoes that inherited two edited genes from their parents would have white eyes, not black. Both these traits make it easier for scientists to easily identify mosquitoes whose genomes had been modified.
Mosquitoes Sterilized by CRISPR Powered Precision System
18648A. A. Sarkar, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, 2021-09-13 20:06:53.
Each year millions around the world are infected by dengue, chikungunya, and Zika viruses. The principal culprit behind the transmission of these deadly diseases is the mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti. Conventional methods of pest control have so far fallen short. To curb the spread of A. aegypti, researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), have now developed a CRISPR-based molecular genetic control system called precision-guided sterile insect technique (pgSIT) that alters insect genes to generate flightless female and sterile male mosquitoes. The pgSIT system can be deployed effectively at any stage in the life cycle of the mosquito. The authors used mathematical models to empirically demonstrate that once released, male A. aegypti mosquitoes sterilized using the pgSIT system can compete, suppress, and eliminate fertile mosquito populations in the wild. The pgSIT system is not limited to restricting mosquito populations, it can be adapted to different vectors to curb transmissible diseases in a safe, confinable, and reversible manner, the authors claim. These findings are reported in the Nature Communications article, “Suppressing mosquito populations with precision guided sterile males.”
Faut-il miser sur le forçage génétique contre les espèces invasives?
18933P. Minet, Le Temps, 2021-09-12 19:51:46.
Un «gene drive» peut servir à annihiler complètement et rapidement une population d’animaux indésirables. Prometteuse pour lutter contre les espèces invasives, cette technologie a fait l’objet d’âpres débats dans le cadre du congrès mondial de la nature à Marseille. Cela peut paraître paradoxal: dans certaines situations, la protection de la biodiversité passe par l’anéantissement d’une espèce. C’est le cas lorsque des écosystèmes fragiles sont confrontés à l’irruption d’un animal ou d’une plante originaire d’une autre zone géographique, et qui a le potentiel de détruire ou de supplanter les espèces locales. L’exemple typique est celui de nombreuses îles où des rats introduits par l’être humain déciment les oiseaux en mangeant leurs œufs.
To exterminate, or not to: Scientists debate tweaking wild genomes
18529French Press Agency, Daily Sabah, 2021-09-12 16:11:31.
veryone remembers Jeff Goldblum's famous speech in 1993 classic Jurassic Park: “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.” Well, these scientists are debating whether one should. In the movie, reconstructing and tweaking genetic material had made it possible to bring dinosaurs back to life. Today, a technology that manipulates animal genomes, called gene drive, has become a reality. The goal, however, is not to revive long-gone species, but to eliminate invasive ones. Steven Spielberg's film was set on an imaginary island off the coast of Costa Rica, and it is also on an island that the first open-air experiments in programmed extinction could take place, according to experts gathered at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Congress in Marseille. It could happen within a decade, they told Agence France-Presse (AFP). That's because fragile island ecosystems are in crisis. Dozens of vertebrate species have vanished in the last century, and dozens more are on a glide path to extinction. The culprits are non-native rats, snakes and mosquitoes – all introduced by humans, for the most part by accident – that eat bird eggs, infect birds with disease, or outcompete indigenous amphibians and mammals. For more than 20 years, Island Conservation has been working to eradicate rodents and other invasive alien species, which are a major threat to biodiversity globally, the organization's Royden Saah told AFP. The conservation NGO has been successful on two Galapagos islands – Seymour North and Mosquera – using traps and poison-delivering drones. But species eradication using these tools is costly and has no guarantee of success. Rat poison is effective, but poses risks to other species.
New precision-guided sterile insect technique designed to control disease-spreading mosquitoes
18674E. Henderson, News Medical Life Sciences, 2021-09-11 19:59:16.
Leveraging advancements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, researchers at the University of California San Diego have created a new system that restrains populations of mosquitoes that infect millions each year with debilitating diseases. The new precision-guided sterile insect technique, or pgSIT, alters genes linked to male fertility--creating sterile offspring--and female flight in Aedes aegypti, the mosquito species responsible for spreading wide-ranging diseases including dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika.Details of the new pgSIT are described September 10, 2021, in the journal Nature Communications. pgSIT differs from "gene drive" systems that could suppress disease vectors by passing desired genetic alterations indefinitely from one generation to the next. Instead, pgSIT uses CRISPR to sterilize male mosquitoes and render female mosquitoes, which spread disease, as flightless. The system is self-limiting and is not predicted to persist or spread in the environment, two important safety features that should enable acceptance for this technology. Akbari says the envisioned pgSIT system could be implemented by deploying eggs of sterile males and flightless females at target locations where mosquito-borne disease spread is occurring.
Scientists debate promise, peril of tweaking wild genomes
18517J. Zamora, Phys Org, 2021-09-11 14:53:57.
In the movie Jurassic Park, reconstructing and tweaking genetic material makes it possible to bring dinosaurs back to life. Today, a technology that manipulates animal genomes, called gene drive, has become a reality. The goal, however, is not to revive long-gone species, but to eliminate invasive ones. Steven Spielberg's film was set on an imaginary island off the coast of Costa Rica, and it is also on an island that the first open-air experiments in programmed extinction could take place, according to experts gathered at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Congress in Marseille. It could happen within a decade, they told AFP. That's because fragile island ecosystems are in crisis. Dozens of vertebrate species have vanished in the last century, and dozens more are on a glide path to extinction. The culprits are non-native rats, snakes and mosquitoes—all introduced by humans, for the most part by accident—that eat bird eggs, infect birds with disease, or outcompete indigenous amphibians and mammals.
Genetic engineering tech promises to sterilize disease-spreading mosquitoes
18525B. Hays, UPI, 2021-09-10 16:01:17.
Inspired by improvements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, scientists have developed a more precise insect sterilization system to curtail, or even eliminate, disease-spreading Aedes aegypti mosquito populations. The so-called "precision-guided sterile insect technique," or pgSIT, relies on gene alterations that disrupt fertility in males and flight in females. Gene-altered males are released into a problematic population to compete with healthy males. "pgSIT is a new scalable genetic control system that uses a CRISPR-based approach to engineer deployable mosquitoes that can suppress populations," corresponding author Omar Akbari said in a press release. Map of malaria parasite's gene activity reveals new targets for drugs, vaccines "Males don't transmit diseases so the idea is that as you release more and more sterile males, you can suppress the population without relying on harmful chemicals and insecticides," said Akbari, a professor of biological sciences at the University of California, San Diego.
Genetic Engineering Technology Promises To Sterilize Disease-Spreading Mosquito Populations
18519D. Gyllhem, VIGOURTIMES, 2021-09-10 15:00:02.
Inspired by improvements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, scientists have developed a more precise insect sterilization system to curtail, or even eliminate, disease-spreading Aedes aegypti mosquito populations. The so-called “precision-guided sterile insect technique,” or pgSIT, relies on gene alterations that disrupt fertility in males and flight in females. Gene-altered males are released into a problematic population to compete with healthy males. Scientists described the novel method in a new paper, published Friday in the journal Nature Communications. “pgSIT is a new scalable genetic control system that uses a CRISPR-based approach to engineer deployable mosquitoes that can suppress populations,” corresponding author Omar Akbari said in a press release. “Males don’t transmit diseases so the idea is that as you release more and more sterile males, you can suppress the population without relying on harmful chemicals and insecticides,” said Akbari, a professor of biological sciences at the University of California, San Diego.
New Technology Designed to Genetically Control Disease-spreading Mosquitoes
18515M. Aguilera, UC San Diego News Center, 2021-09-10 14:49:00.
Leveraging advancements in CRISPR-based genetic engineering, researchers at the University of California San Diego have created a new system that restrains populations of mosquitoes that infect millions each year with debilitating diseases. An illustration by study coauthor Stephanie Gamez depicts flightless females and sterile male mosquitoes, features of the new precision-guided sterile insect technique, or pgSIT, which is designed to control disease-spreading Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The new precision-guided sterile insect technique, or pgSIT, alters genes linked to male fertility—creating sterile offspring—and female flight in Aedes aegypti, the mosquito species responsible for spreading wide-ranging diseases including dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika. “pgSIT is a new scalable genetic control system that uses a CRISPR-based approach to engineer deployable mosquitoes that can suppress populations,” said UC San Diego Biological Sciences Professor Omar Akbari. “Males don’t transmit diseases so the idea is that as you release more and more sterile males, you can suppress the population without relying on harmful chemicals and insecticides.”
Genetically Modified Mosquitoes — What’s The Real Story?
18289SPW Staff, Southeast Product Weekly, 2021-09-02 14:58:32.
You’ve heard about the genetically modified mutant mosquitoes being released in the Florida Keys — but what exactly is going on, and how, and why? Basically, researchers in parts of the Florida Keys are releasing male mosquitoes that have been genetically modified to produce only male offspring. In a generation or two, there are no more girl mosquitoes to have baby mosquitoes. That’s the simple explanation. t might help to know this experiment was tried once before — successfully — in Brazil.There’s now a new, science-based online information resource about genetically modified mosquitoes from University of Florida scientists at the UF/IFAS Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory. “Genetically Modified Mosquitoes” is the latest publication on Ask IFAS, UF/IFAS’ Electronic Data Information Source (EDIS) peer-reviewed site, that provides relevant information regarding the pilot projects in select areas of the Florida Keys. The experiments, which are a collaboration between the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District and the biotechnology company Oxitec founded in the United Kingdom out of Oxford University, are permitted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
EPA Seeks Public Comment on Proposed Amendment to Experimental Use Permit for Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes
18279PCT Staff, Pest Control Technology, 2021-09-01 14:19:37.
EPA is seeking public comment on a proposed amendment to extend and expand an approved Experimental Use Permit (EUP). The EUP currently allows Oxitec Ltd. to field test the use of genetically engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes as a way to reduce mosquito populations in Florida and Texas through April 2022. The proposed amendment would extend field testing in Florida by another 24 months on up to 6,240 acres and expand testing to California on up 84,600 acres. This amendment is still being reviewed by EPA and has not yet been approved. Once EPA finishes reviewing the proposed amendment and public comments, EPA will make a decision about whether to extend and expand the EUP. In May 2020, EPA granted Oxitec’s EUP after extensive evaluation of the best available science, consideration of public input, and consultation with technical experts at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Starting in late April 2021, Oxitec has been measuring how effective OX5034 genetically engineered mosquitoes are in suppressing Aedes aegypti mosquito populations in Florida. They release genetically engineered male mosquitoes that have a gene that makes a specific protein. This protein, as produced in female mosquitoes, prevents female offspring from surviving. The absence of female mosquito emergence in the release area results in mosquito population decline, and potentially, the reduction of vector pathogens that cause mosquito-borne illnesses such as the dengue, Zika and chikungunya viruses.
UF/IFAS Researchers Explain Science Behind Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
18276PCT Staff, Pest Control Technology, 2021-09-01 14:14:47.
South Florida residents seeking science-based information about genetically modified mosquitoes can access a new, online resource from University of Florida scientists at the UF/IFAS Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory.“ Genetically Modified Mosquitoes” is the latest publication on Ask IFAS, UF/IFAS’ Electronic Data Information Source (EDIS) peer-reviewed site, that provides relevant information regarding the pilot projects in select areas of the Florida Keys. The experiments, which are a collaboration between the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District and the biotechnology company Oxitec founded in the United Kingdom out of Oxford University, are permitted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The UF/IFAS publication describes the mosquito species being targeted, what to expect from the pilot projects, why this approach is being used as well as answers to other frequently asked questions about genetically modified mosquitoes. The publication also lists additional linked resources for readers interested in more detailed information on the topic and science. “The rationale for producing this document is to help inform the public and those who are interested or impacted by the current trials run by Oxitec,” said Eric Caragata, an assistant professor at UF/IFAS FMEL. “As scientists who are not directly involved in the project, we wanted to clearly address some of the important questions and concerns.”
$1M in funding for project to cull mouse plagues
18349K. Brown, University of Adelaide NEWSROOM, 2021-08-31 13:47:59.
South Australian researchers are set to use genetic tools to help find innovative solutions to the devastating mouse plagues that have caused massive economic damage to Australian farmers.The University of Adelaide has been awarded $1 million in funding from the South Australian Government’s Research and Innovation Fund (RIF), to undertake the ground-breaking Genetic Biocontrol Technology for Invasive Pests, or Gene Drive, project, in conjunction with the Department for Environment and Water.Researchers from the University of Adelaide will develop genetic strategies to suppress invasive rodents with maximum specificity and safety. The team will also conduct research to engage with stakeholders to understand community views and concerns.
Genetically changed mosquitoes could transform Africa’s long fight against malaria
18258L. Singh, ForumIAS, 2021-08-30 13:13:44.
In nature, there’s a phenomenon called gene drive which operates in the process of reproduction. This is when a genetic element is able to increase the chance that it will be inherited by offspring. The general underlying principle of all gene drives is an organism that will produce offspring similar to themselves. Some characteristics are randomly passed on from parents to the next generation. However, gene drive forces a different type of inheritance that ensures a specific characteristic is always present in the next generation. Scientists engineer gene drive using various molecular tools. Gene drive is not just a human invention; some occur naturally in insects. Unlike traditional genetic modification, gene drives enable extremely rapid spread of the desired characteristics.
Millions of Lab-Grown Mosquitoes Are Being Released in Guangzhou
18219F. Yiying, Sixth Tone, 2021-08-25 15:26:45.
Guangzhou is releasing millions of lab-engineered mosquitoes every day to neuter and prevent preexisting mosquitoes in the environment from spreading vector-borne diseases, local television station reported Saturday.The Guangzhou Wolbaki Biotech Co., Ltd., in partnership with the city’s disease control and prevention bureau, releases about five million lab-grown male mosquitoes daily, which only mate with aedes albopictus mosquitoes to stop them from reproducing disease-carrying offspring, according to the media report. Only female aedes albopictus, also known as tiger mosquitoes, prey on people, potentially transmitting the viruses that cause dengue and chikungunya, among other illnesses.The biotech company’s “mosquito factory” in Guangzhou — where dengue fever is a public health concern — breeds mosquitoes to produce offspring carrying the Wolbachia bacteria, which is commonly found in insects and not harmful to humans, before releasing them to the environment. When mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia mate with aedes albopictus, it reduces the replication of the viruses they carry, making them less likely to transmit it to humans.
New Way to Reduce Diseases Spreading Through Mosquitos
18207Dr Jayashree, Medindia, 2021-08-25 15:01:01.
Using a gene editing tool known as CRISPR-Cas9 that targets specific genes tied to fertility in male mosquitoes, we can slow the spread of potentially deadly diseases such as Zika, dengue fever and yellow fever. This genome editing tool is creating a buzz in the science world, as it is faster, cheaper and more accurate than previous techniques of editing DNA and has a wide range of potential applications.. Researchers at the Army's Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies and the University of California Santa Barbara experimented with the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, found in tropical, subtropical and temperate regions throughout the world
Gene Editing Could Render Mosquitos Infertile
18168U.S. Army DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory Public Affairs, U.S. Army, 2021-08-23 14:51:29.
Africa must not rest until Malaria rests: What is the role of emerging technologies?
18165R. Oronje, AFIDEP, 2021-08-20 14:42:16.
As we mark the World Mosquito Day today, it is a sad reminder that Malaria still kills hundreds of thousands of people every year, majority of these people in Africa. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Malaria killed 409,000 people in 2019, and 94% of these deaths were in Africa. For those who survive the disease, they have many horrifying tales to tell because many get Malaria every so often, especially for those living in Malaria endemic regions. I have many horrifying tales of my experience with Malaria because I grew up in the Malaria-endemic region of Western Kenya. One of these tales is when I passed out in school when I was in Primary-4 because I had refused to take the very bitter Quinine tablets. My Mum was called to take me to hospital and by the time she arrived, I was in “hallucination mode” because all I remember is seeing two Mums lifting me up; and the next time I woke up, I was in a nearby health facility. My parents still live in this region, which means I visit them often and so every time I visit Western Kenya without taking prophylaxis, I can be sure I will come back with Malaria. But this blog is not about my horrifying Malaria tales, so I will not delve much more into that. Although many people in sub-Saharan Africa have suffered from Malaria, many are not aware of ongoing efforts to develop and test new tools with potential to eliminate Malaria. In a recent study by the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP) on the “Landscape and Political Economy Analysis of Emerging Health Technologies in Sub-Saharan Africa”, we found that apart from the researchers developing these new tools and their funding agencies, other stakeholders including journalists, civil society actors, and policymakers know little, if anything, about the ongoing research on emerging health technologies, including those technologies being developed with potential to eliminate Malaria.
The Complex Lives of Mosquitoes: The Key for Malaria Control
18216F. Okumu, ISGlobal, 2021-08-19 15:19:27.
Mosquitoes spread diseases to millions of people around the world, yet they remain poorly understood by most. Studying their biology and behaviours can help us combat, and eventually eliminate, dangerous diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.There are nearly 3,500 species of mosquitoes. About 400 belong to a family called Anopheles, and of these, only about 50-70 can actually transmit malaria to humans. In Africa, where the malaria burden is highest, the most important are Anopheles gambiae, Anopheles funestus, Anopheles arabiensis and Anopheles colluzzi. Often, only one or two of these dominate malaria transmission in any country. Effective malaria control can therefore be achieved by simply identifying, understanding and then targeting just the one or two dominant Anopheles species instead of trying to kill all mosquitoes.A female Anopheles lays about 500 eggs in her lifetime, usually in standing fresh waters, although some breed along rivers or in brackish waters. The eggs weigh just 4 micrograms each and float like little pontoons on the water surfaces
Attack of the Superweeds
18153H. C. Brown, New York Times, 2021-08-18 17:55:25.
If there’s a plant perfectly suited to outcompete the farmers, researchers and chemical companies that collectively define industrial American agriculture, it’s Palmer amaranth. This pigweed (a catchall term that includes some plants in the amaranth family) can re-root itself after being yanked from the ground. It can grow three inches a day. And it has evolved resistance to many of the most common weed killers, continuing to reproduce in what ought to be the worst of circumstances: A three-day-old, herbicide-injured seedling, for example, can expend its last bit of energy to produce seeds before it withers up and dies. Unchecked, Palmer amaranth can suppress soybean yields by nearly 80 percent and corn yields by about 90 percent. Nicolet was ultimately allowed to spray dicamba last summer because he purchased it before restrictions took effect. He used it this year too: The Trump administration issued new approvals for some formulations containing dicamba just a week before the presidential election. Still, Nicolet says the weed killer will eventually stop working on his land, another management tool rendered useless by the pigweed’s remarkable onslaught. Whether that day is 10 years in the future or three, he has no idea, but the Palmer amaranth continues to gain ground all the while. This summer, a handful of pigweeds sprouted in a field that had recently been sprayed. Nicolet couldn’t weed the 96 affected acres by hand, so he decided to let them grow. “It’s not really enough to hurt yield this year,” he said. “But you know, you have 100 weeds out there, the next year you’ll have a million.”
Mobilizing Mutant Mosquitoes to Fight Malaria
18227D. Mclaughlin and J. Recht, United Nations Foundation, 2021-08-18 15:49:29.
World Mosquito Day today marks the 1897 discovery by Sir Ronald Ross that female Anopheles mosquitoes spread malaria. Since that breakthrough, the world has fought this deadly disease through scientific research and new technology. While astounding progress has been made against the ancient disease, more than 400,000 people died from malaria in 2019, two-thirds of them children under 5, the vast majority in Africa.Existing malaria controls such as spraying insecticides indoors or sleeping beneath long-lasting insecticidal bed nets work by blocking mosquitoes from biting people and transmitting malaria. Such tools have helped halve malaria in many countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Yet this remarkable progress is in jeopardy as mosquitoes develop resistance to these insecticides. As the dangerous mosquito continues to adapt, health interventions must continue evolving to protect families from this disease and move us closer to a malaria-free world. Now, there is a promising new tool, seemingly ripped from the pages of a science fiction novel, to stop malaria’s spread: genetically modified mosquitoes.
Identifying Sites for Testing Modified Mosquitoes as a Strategy to Eradicate Malaria
18222A. Fell, UC Davis News, 2021-08-18 15:34:12.
In a newly published article in the journal Evolutionary Applications Professor Greg Lanzaro and his team at the Vector Genetics Laboratory, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, set forth a framework for the selection of field sites in Africa best suited for testing genetically engineered mosquitoes (GEMs).“We followed earlier recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences and the World Health Organization that argued that a physical island would be a logical place to initiate early field trials of a GEM that uses gene drive technology,” Lanzaro said.n this paper, they establish a set of criteria including geographic and genetic isolation, biological complexity, island size, and topography and apply these criteria to a set of 22 potential island sites located off the coast of Africa. Their goal is to identify sites that maximize prospects for success, minimize risk, and serve as a fair, valid and convincing test of the efficacy and impacts of a GEM product intended for large-scale deployment in Africa.
Why Genes That Make Mosquitoes Glow Can Help Reduce Vector-Borne Disease
18143E. Ricciuti, Entomology Today, 2021-08-17 17:21:36.
Fireflies they are not, but glow they do. Not in the dark, to be sure, but mosquitoes genetically modified in the laboratory for an emerging approach to reducing the threat of vector-borne disease look like miniature neon signs when subjected to ultraviolet light. To produce genetically modified, or transgenic, mosquitoes, scientists stich together a construct of mosquito DNA that endows them with a trait that kills off females before they can reproduce, eventually suppressing the surrounding population. Two genes are inserted together into the modified DNA. One is a self-limiting device that prevents female mosquitoes from maturing to adults. The other is a marker that makes the mosquitoes that possess it glow under certain wavelengths of ultraviolet light, facilitating identification when they are collected in monitoring efforts. Scientists at North Carolina State University (NCSU) are trying to give that glow more pizzazz, according to a new study published in July in the Journal of Medical Entomology.
Genetic modification could be used to combat invasive crayfish
18086O. Rudgard, The Telegraph, 2021-08-15 17:34:40.
Genetically-modified crayfish carrying infertility genes could be used to tackle the problem of invasive crustaceans in British waterways. A technique being developed by scientists at the University of Edinburgh's Roslin Institute offers hope for conservationists trying to tackle the problem of American crayfish invading UK rivers. "Gene drive" science, which involves altering the genetics of individuals of a certain species to spread desirable traits through a population, has been mooted as a possible solution to malarial mosquitoes and, in the UK, to the problem of invasive grey squirrels, where it would be used to spread infertility. Scientists are now suggesting the same technique as a potential solution to the problem of signal crayfish, a US species introduced to the UK in the 1970s that now poses a serious threat to Britain's native white-clawed crayfish.
Oxitec mosquito release expands
18082T. Java, Keynews.com, 2021-08-11 17:17:55.
Beginning this week, less than 200,000 genetically modified Aedes aegypti male mosquitoes will emerge from Oxitec’s designer bo…
Oxitec eyes California for its next GM mosquito pilot projec
18075J. Conrow, 2021-08-11 17:09:34.
Buoyed by its success in the Florida Keys, Oxitec Ltd. is now looking to California to test its program for controlling mosquito pests through genetic engineering, rather than insecticides. The field research is intended to show that genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes are a viable alternative to spraying insecticides in a bid to control a disease-carrying species of mosquito. Due to climate change, the invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are spreading into new regions throughout the Western United States, including more than 300 cities and towns across California. Aedes aegypti transmit dengue, Zika, heartworm and other diseases, many of which have no treatments or vaccines.
Oxitec Advances Process to Bring Friendly™ Mosquito Technology to California to Help Government Agencies Protect Public Health
18046Oxitec, Oxitec, 2021-08-09 15:11:08.
Following successful launch of its Friendly™ Aedes aegypti pilot program in the Florida Keys, Oxitec, the leading developer of biological solutions to control pests that transmit disease, destroy crops and harm livestock, has requested approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to pilot its technology in California in partnership with local government agencies that have demonstrated interest in evaluating the technology.
Scientists eradicate malaria-transmitting mosquitos using genetic engineering which make females infertile in new study which takes one step closer to wiping out the disease worldwide.
18078C. Ciaccia, Daily Mail, 2021-07-30 17:09:51.
Malaria kills nearly 500,000 people globally every year, but scientists have now figured out a way to use CRISPR gene-editing technology to make female mosquitoes infertile, described as a 'game-changer' for ending the deadly disease. Researchers from Imperial College London, Genomics Genetics and Biology, and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine were able to use a gene drive for the first time to not only show that blocking female reproduction worked in a lab setting, but natural-like setting as well. The researchers targeted the mosquito species Anopheles gambiae, which is responsible for the majority of malaria transmissions in sub-Saharan Africa. The gene-drives targets the gene known as 'doublesex' in these mosquitoes.
Breakthrough in non-GMO malaria control
17914C. Robinson and J. Matthews, GM Watch, 2021-07-29 15:27:47.
A just-published study carried out in a high-security lab claims to show that a CRISPR gene drive (a way of forcing a heritable genetic modification through a whole species or population) can crash populations of malaria-spreading mosquitoes. But why crash mosquito populations with a risky experimental technology if you can completely stop them spreading malaria naturally? A naturally occurring biocontrol agent – a microbe – that inhibits the development of the malaria parasite in the mosquito Anopheles arabiensis, which spreads malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa, has recently been reported in the journal Nature Communications. Among the notable features of this approach are: • The microbe doesn’t seem to harm the mosquitoes in any way • Because it doesn’t kill the mosquitoes or cut their numbers, it should not have an impact on ecosystems dependent on them for food • The microbe seems to give the mosquitoes lifelong protection from malaria infection. The researchers are based at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Kenya, and in the UK. The microbe featured in their recent publication is a microsporidian. Microsporidia are unicellular spore-forming parasites that are now recognised as fungi, or as being related to fungi. All major animal groups harbour them, particularly insects. They spread horizontally, via spores that are ingested by a new host, but many also undergo vertical transmission to the next generation, via infected eggs (known as transovarial transmission).
Genetic engineering may rid world of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes
18163Y. Steinbuch, New York Post, 2021-07-29 14:35:51.
Scientists have eradicated a population of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes by using genetic engineering to make the females infertile — in what the lead researcher called a possible “game-changer in bringing about malaria elimination.” A team of researchers — led by scientists at Imperial College London, Italy’s Polo Genomics Genetics and Biology, and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine — used the “gene drive” technology for the study, which was published in Nature Communications. “Gene drive is a self-sustaining and fast-acting technology that can work alongside existing tools such as bed nets, insecticides and vaccines — and could be a game-changer in bringing about malaria elimination,” Andrew Hammond, a molecular biologist at Imperial College London, told the Guardian. Using the technology, scientists may circumvent natural selection by providing genetic instructions that will spread through a mosquito population and pass on a particular trait — in this case, infertility — much faster than could be attained through regular selective breeding, the outlet said.
Gene-Drive Technology Could Decimate Malaria-Carrying Mosquitoes–Scientists Use CRISPR to Modify the Insects’ Genes
17925J. Henry, Tech Times, 2021-07-28 17:53:43.
Gene-drive technology can now suppress the growing numbers of mosquitoes that carry malaria. A group of researchers discovered that this gene-editing technique can eradicate the vectors that could rapidly populate in a particular environment. A mosquito (Anopheles albimanus) is prepared to be studied in a laboratory at the Center for Scientific Research Caucaseco in the outskirts of Cali, Colombia, on April 25, 2012, during the World Day for the fight against malaria. After Colombian physician Manuel Elkin Patarroyo developed a vaccine against malaria in 1986, Colombian scientists keep researching for another immunization for the illness, which in 2010 caused over 855.000 deaths all over the world. A team of 40 scientists is preparing to begin the second phase of chemical tests for a synthetic vaccine against malaria. Malaria is caused by the Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falcitarum parasites, and is transmitted by mosquitoes. In a study entitled "Gene-drive suppression of mosquito populations in large cages as a bridge between lab and field" published on Wednesday, July 28 on Nature.com, scientists used genetic engineering to create a special class of mosquitoes that would exterminate those that carry malaria.According to the researchers, their main aim is to develop a weapon that would lessen or wipe out the malaria-spreading mosquitoes. Most importantly, they applied the DNA sequence called "gene drive" to the male mosquitoes. Ruth Muller, one of the researchers who is an entomologist at PoloGGB, said that what they did was a "big breakthrough" in science. Somehow, the scientists are also thinking of freeing the genetically modified mosquitoes someday, but it would take some time to ensure that it is applicable.
Malaria-carrying mosquitoes could be bred out of existence using ‘gene drive’ technology
17923A. Wilkins, METRO, 2021-07-28 17:49:56.
Malaria-carrying mosquitoes have been eliminated using ‘gene drive’ technology in a nature-like environment, in a world-first study. By altering a gene that blocks female mosquito reproduction, and allowing that gene to spread, researchers found they could ensure complete mosquito population collapse within one year of the experiment’s start. It’s the first time so-called ‘gene drive’ technology has been shown to be effective in challenging ecological conditions over a long time scale. The results of the study, published in Nature Communications today, could be a key tool in battling the hundreds of millions of cases of malaria infections that happen each year. ‘The challenges facing malaria elimination have intensified in recent years, due in part to the spread of insecticide resistance and large gaps in funding for parts of sub-Saharan Africa,’ said co-lead author of the study Dr. Drew Hammond. ‘Sadly, researchers estimate that Covid-19 related disruptions may have doubled mortality from malaria in 2020, threatening a setback of several decades. ‘Gene drive is a self-sustaining and fast acting technology that can work alongside existing tools such as bed nets, insecticides and vaccines – and could be a game-changer in bringing about malaria elimination.’
Scientists reveal controversial genetically modified mosquitoes in high-security lab
17920The Frontier Post, The Frontier Post, 2021-07-28 17:44:04.
Many years of additional research will be needed to prove the approach works and the mosquitoes would be safe to release into the wild. The project would also require regulatory approval and agreement by local residents in areas where those mosquitoes live, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. Despite years of efforts, malaria remains a major health problem. The mosquito-borne parasitic disease sickens more than 200 million people every year and kills more than 400,000, many of whom are children. So Muller and her colleagues decided to use CRISPR, a technique that enables scientists to easily make very precise changes in DNA to genetically modify the Anopheles gambiae species of mosquito, which spreads malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. The modification consisted of a mutation in a gene known as “doublesex,” which female mosquitoes need for normal development. The mutation deforms their mouths, making them unable to bite and spread the parasite. It also deforms their reproductive organs, rendering them unable to lay eggs. The mutation is combined with a gene drive, “effectively a selfish type of genetic element that spreads itself in the mosquito population,” says Tony Nolan of the Liverpool School of Tropical
Genetic engineering test with mosquitoes ‘may be game changer’ in eliminating malaria
17918L. Geddes, The Guardian, 2021-07-28 17:38:58.
Scientists have successfully wiped out a population of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes by using a radical form of genetic engineering to render the females infertile – in the most advanced and largest ever test of use of the technology to fight the disease. As well as bringing fresh hope in the fight against one of the world’s biggest killers, the study lays the foundations for further trials of gene-drive technology, which could mean self-destroying mosquitoes being released into the wild within 10 years. “This is a very exciting development,” said Dr Thomas Price, a senior lecturer in evolution, ecology and behaviour at the University of Liverpool, who was not involved in the research. “There are still lots of ethical and regulatory questions that need answering. But none of those really matter if it is impossible to build gene drives that are effective in the field. This is a major step towards achieving that.” Despite the reduction in malaria over recent decades there were still 229m cases of the disease in 2019, and 409,000 deaths. Dr Drew Hammond, at Imperial College London, who led the new research, said: “Gene drive is a self sustaining and fast acting technology that can work alongside existing tools such as bed nets, insecticides and vaccines, and could be a game changer in bringing about malaria elimination.”
World Nature Conservation Day: Technology to Forge a Path for Nature Conservation and Communities
17912P. Becker, Isand Conservation, 2021-07-28 15:23:24.
Gene drives are a genetic phenomenon that occurs in nature and causes a gene or trait to have a greater than 50% chance of inheritance. Island Conservation and partners have formed the Genetic Biocontrol of Invasive Rodents (GBIRd) partnership, to explore the technical and social feasibility of creating a gene drive to eliminate invasive rodents on islands. For example, a gene drive that causes rats to produce all male offspring spreads through an invasive population until there is no natural recruitment. On this World Nature Conservation Day, I would like to invite you to reflect on the scale, speed and costs of the efforts needed to address current conservation challenges. Gene drive could be a game-changer for conservation, making nature restoration and sustainable development gains possible on islands where these are currently out of reach today. Combined with existing tools, gene drive could transform the future of island restoration, drastically increasing the scope, scale, and pace of our work, and realizing benefits for island wildlife and communities around the world.
How An Altered Strand Of DNA Can Cause Malaria-Spreading Mosquitoes To Self-Destruct
17862R. Stein, NPR, 2021-07-28 15:19:15.
For the first time, scientists have shown that a new kind of genetic engineering can crash populations of malaria-spreading mosquitoes. In the landmark study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature Communications, researchers placed the genetically modified mosquitoes in a special laboratory that simulated the conditions in sub-Saharan Africa, where they spread the deadly disease. The male mosquitoes were engineered with a sequence of DNA known as a "gene drive" that can rapidly transmit a deleterious mutation that essentially wipes out populations of the insects. The goal is to create a powerful new tool to fight malaria, which remains one of the world's most terrible scourges. "Our study is the first [that] could show that gene-drive technology works under ecologically challenging conditions," says Ruth Muller, an entomologist who led the research at PoloGGB, a high-security lab in Terni, Italy. "This is the big breakthrough that we made with our study."
A lab experiment shows that we could engineer malaria-carrying mosquitoes to kill themselves off
17909A. Micu, ZME Science, 2021-07-28 15:17:37.
A new paper showcases how genetic engineering can be used to cause populations of malaria-spreading mosquitoes to self-destroy. An international research effort has shown, in the context of a lab experiment, that male mosquitoes engineered to carry a certain strand of DNA can rapidly destroy entire groups of these blood-sucking insects. The main importance of this experiment is that it showcases that gene-drive technology can be used even in harsh environmental conditions, such as those in sub-Saharan Africa. This “gene drive” sequence is essentially a damaging mutation that could prove to be a powerful tool against the carriers of malaria.
Malarial mosquitoes suppressed in experiments that mimic natural environments
17903H. Dunning, Phys Org, 2021-07-28 14:58:38.
Researchers have shown "gene drive" technology, which spreads a genetic modification blocking female reproduction, works in natural-like settings. The team, led by researchers from Imperial College London, Polo GGB and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine were able to suppress populations of a malaria-carrying mosquito in a year-long experiment mimicking natural environments. This is the first time a gene drive has been shown to be as effective as expected when tested in challenging ecological conditions over a long timescale. The results are published today in Nature Communications. Despite the reduction in malaria over recent decades, there were still 229 million cases of malaria in 2019—an increase on the previous year—and 409,000 deaths. Co-lead author of the study Dr. Drew Hammond, from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London and the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, said: "The challenges facing malaria elimination have intensified in recent years, due in part to the spread of insecticide resistance and large gaps in funding for parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
A Sterile Solution: How Crispr Could Protect Wild Salmon
17821L. Abend, UNDARK, 2021-07-21 14:44:32.
In an attempt to prevent escaped fish from interbreeding with their wild counterparts and threatening the latter’s genetic diversity, molecular biologist Anna Wargelius and her team at the Institute of Marine Research in Norway have spent years working on ways to induce sterility in Atlantic salmon. Farmed salmon that cannot reproduce, after all, pose no threat to the gene pool of wild stocks, and Wargelius has successfully developed a technique that uses the gene-editing technology Crispr to prevent the development of the cells that would otherwise generate functioning sex organs. In fact, Wargelius’ team was a little too successful. To be financially viable, commercial fish farms need at least some of their stock to reproduce. So the scientists went a step further, developing a method of temporarily reversing the modification they had already made. They’ve created what they call “sterile parents.” The term may sound like an oxymoron, but the sterile parents have the potential to solve one of the most pressing problems facing salmon aquaculture, both in Norway and around the world. Wargelius says it could be up to a decade before the results of her work are commercially available, but once they are, they have the potential to make an already burgeoning food source markedly more friendly on the environment. And by prioritizing environmental concerns and employing a technique that simply turns off a gene rather than introducing one from a different species, Wargelius and her team may contribute to a shift in how genetic engineering is perceived in Norway, a country with some of the strictest regulations regarding genetically modified organisms on the books.
GM mosquitoes to fight malaria
17818I. Khisa, The INDEPENDENT, 2021-07-19 14:40:06.
Scientists at the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) plans to undertake a research on genetically engineered mosquitoes to tackle malaria. Dr. Jonathan Kayondo, the principal investigator Target Malaria Uganda and Senior Research Officer at UVRI had an email interview with The Independent’s Isaac Khisa about the research and here are the excerpts: n Uganda, Target Malaria’s research is still in early stages, currently at facility readiness. The Uganda Virus Research Institute became a primary Target Malaria project site in 2016. We have been laying the research groundwork by setting up the necessary infrastructure and building capacity of the teams. We constructed a new Arthropod Containment Level 2 (ACL2) insectary to facilitate future studies on development and evaluation of genetically modified mosquitoes following international containment guidelines and best practices. It was inaugurated in July 2019. Our teams are currently testing the facility for functionality by studying the local wild mosquitoes under containment and developing standard operating procedures (SOPs) as part of the capacity building efforts. We are also busy developing stakeholder engagement strategies and preparing to apply for regulatory approval for the next stage of our research.
Yes, genetically modified mosquitoes do exist, but they don’t bite and aren’t harmful to humans
17815E. Jones and M. Chamberlin, WKYC Studios, 2021-07-19 14:35:11.
In 2021, Oxitec, a biotechnology company that develops genetically modified insects that safely and sustainably control pests that spread disease, damage crops and harm livestock across the globe, partnered with the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District (FKMCD) to evaluate the effectiveness of Oxitec mosquitoes to control the invasive, disease-spreading Aedes aegypti mosquito in the Florida Keys. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes typically live in tropical and subtropical climates, according to the CDC. The agency says Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are more likely to spread Zika, dengue, chikungunya and other viruses than other types of mosquitoes because they live near and prefer to feed on people. “One of the things that sort of works against the Aedes aegypti is that they are anthropophilic,” said Dr. Floyd Shockley, the collections manager in the Department of Entomology at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. “Most of the mosquitoes that feed on humans tend to fly at night, but Aedes aegypti flies during the day. It's actually the mosquito that you usually run into when you're out hiking.” Dr. Nathan Rose, the head of Regulatory Affairs at Oxitec, tells VERIFY the company produces genetically modified male mosquitoes to target the wild Aedes aegypti female mosquitoes because they are the main vector for viral diseases.
Genetically Modifying Bats Could Prevent the Next Pandemic, Scientists Say
17744G. Dutton, BioSpace, 2021-07-15 13:26:12.
The next COVID pandemic could be prevented by using a gene drive to preemptively edit the genome of bats to prevent them from becoming hosts for coronaviruses, according to a proposal by scientists from Israel’s Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzelia and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Meanwhile, a team of researchers from Imperial College London is devising a way to prevent gene drives from spreading and conferring heritable, anti-competitive traits to entire populations. The two projects may be in conflict with one another, or the London project may provide a degree of safety that could manage unintended consequences. The IDC/NIH plan, Preventing COVID-59, was published recently on GitHub by Uaniv Erlich of the (IDC) and Daniel Douek of the Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases at the NIH in the U.S. Its premise is that the SARS-CoV-2 virus – the third such virus to infect humans in the past 20 years – is part of a growing pattern of betacoronaviruses infecting human populations.
Gene Drives – Engineering the Wild
17825L. Sharratt, Sentinel, 2021-07-13 14:52:05.
So far, genetically engineered organisms have been mostly limited to agricultural use, with partial success. Around the world, a few major crops (mostly corn, soy, and cotton) are genetically engineered, predominantly for herbicide tolerance and insect resistance. However, the newer techniques of genome editing (also called gene editing) mean that a much wider variety of organisms can now be genetically engineered, including for many purposes outside of food and farming. This increased power is most dramatically illustrated in the development of gene drive technology. Unlike genetically engineered plants and animals intended for confined use in agricultural production, gene drive organisms are expressly designed for intentional, long-lived release into the wild. Gene drives are a technology through which a few individual genetically engineered organisms would be deployed to intentionally push new genes through an entire population of a species in the wild or in a farm ecosystem. Through the gene drive mechanism, new genes would be inherited by all offspring in subsequent generations, not just the expected half in normal inheritance. When gene drive organisms reproduce, specific traits as well as the gene drive mechanism itself would be passed on. Making such spreading genetic changes to an organism, or eliminating it in the wild, could disrupt whole ecosystems in ways that are difficult or impossible to predict or reverse.
Unique effort underway to control deadly mosquitos in Florida Keys
17823K. Corso and L. Aguirre, Local10.com, 2021-07-12 14:48:28.
According to the World Health Organization, more than 50% of the world’s population is under the threat of mosquito borne diseases. In South Florida, the Keys are a hot spot for infection and now the first place in the United States for a novel approach to eradicating these deadly insects. A mosquito control effort in the works for over a decade is now off the ground. The Oxitec Project uses genetically modified Aedes Aegypti male mosquitos to mate with females of the Aedes Aegypti species which carry some of the deadliest diseases “Ades Aegypti themselves are responsible for transmitting Yellow Fever, Dengue Fever, Chikungunya, Zika virus, said Andrea Leal, entomologist and executive director of the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District. Only the female mosquitos bite so the Oxitec Project targets the female population of the species. “So with this project, we’re releasing males only and they’ve been modified with a female lethal gene which means as they go out and they mate with our wild females, all those female offspring will die,” Leal said.
