3 ms·

I think it's only a matter of time before someone decides to release a gene-drive mosquito into the wild: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_drive https://en.wi

by rgejman 11y ago

I think it's only a matter of time before someone decides to release a gene-drive mosquito into the wild: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_drive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_drive

jfoster 11y ago
Apologies if I'm misunderstanding, but isn't this the same thing the article is talking about? In which case, 800,000 have already been released.
- rgejman 11y ago
  NO. The article is talking about releasing sterile mosquitoes. This is a chronic intervention in the sense that you need to continue releasing sterile mosquitoes over time in order to keep populations low. The gene drive technology is a one-shot deal: you release a few mosquitos and a few generations later none of them can be infected with malaria.
- RobertoG 11y ago
  It's not the same. The modified mosquitoes in the article breed sterile offspring. The modification doesn't go beyond that. This has been already done in the wild. As far as I know, genetic drive have not been used outside the labs. It works by "imposing" the inheritance of a selected gen even if it is bad for the individual. Theoretically, this could be used for change a full population or even exterminate it. It seems that a first candidate that everybody think about is mosquitoes.
mih 11y ago
Complete eradication of mosquitoes would be counter productive, especially given that mosquitoes are a major reason some places such as tropical forests have low human activity - http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35408835 http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35408835. Selectively countering the harmful traits of mosquitoes appears to be the best way to go about it.
- themartorana 11y ago
  I'd rather people enjoy tropical forests than clear-cut them. I know it's not a binary, but mosquitos don't stop us from destroying rainforests.
- rgejman 11y ago
  Gene drives do not have to be used to eradicate mosquitos (although they can be used that way). They can be used to spread malaria resistance genes to mosquitoes, thereby rendering mosquito populations immune to malaria infection. http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1521077112 http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1521077112
- vilhelm_s 11y ago
  I don't living in an area where mosquitoes spread any diseases, but I would still like to eradicate them just to make it more enjoyable to take a stroll in the forest. I imagine people in the tropics might feel the same.

by rgejman 11y ago

I think it's only a matter of time before someone decides to release a gene-drive mosquito into the wild: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_drive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_drive

jfoster 11y ago

Apologies if I'm misunderstanding, but isn't this the same thing the article is talking about? In which case, 800,000 have already been released.

rgejman 11y ago
NO. The article is talking about releasing sterile mosquitoes. This is a chronic intervention in the sense that you need to continue releasing sterile mosquitoes over time in order to keep populations low. The gene drive technology is a one-shot deal: you release a few mosquitos and a few generations later none of them can be infected with malaria.
RobertoG 11y ago
It's not the same. The modified mosquitoes in the article breed sterile offspring. The modification doesn't go beyond that. This has been already done in the wild. As far as I know, genetic drive have not been used outside the labs. It works by "imposing" the inheritance of a selected gen even if it is bad for the individual. Theoretically, this could be used for change a full population or even exterminate it. It seems that a first candidate that everybody think about is mosquitoes.

mih 11y ago

Complete eradication of mosquitoes would be counter productive, especially given that mosquitoes are a major reason some places such as tropical forests have low human activity - http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35408835 http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35408835. Selectively countering the harmful traits of mosquitoes appears to be the best way to go about it.

themartorana 11y ago
I'd rather people enjoy tropical forests than clear-cut them. I know it's not a binary, but mosquitos don't stop us from destroying rainforests.
rgejman 11y ago
Gene drives do not have to be used to eradicate mosquitos (although they can be used that way). They can be used to spread malaria resistance genes to mosquitoes, thereby rendering mosquito populations immune to malaria infection. http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1521077112 http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1521077112
vilhelm_s 11y ago
I don't living in an area where mosquitoes spread any diseases, but I would still like to eradicate them just to make it more enjoyable to take a stroll in the forest. I imagine people in the tropics might feel the same.