#oxitec

In April 2021, researchers from biotech company Oxitec released bioengineered male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which don’t bite, to mate with the wild female population in the Florida keys. The genetically engineered males will pass a modified gene on that will kill their female offspring as larva. – WTF Fun Facts

An experimental trial to reduce the number of mosquitoes in a Brazilian town by releasing genetically modified mosquitoes has not gone as planned. Traces of the mutated insects have been detected in the natural population of mosquitoes, which was never supposed to happen.

The deliberate release of 450,000 transgenic mosquitoes in Jacobina, Brazil has resulted in the unintended genetic contamination of the local population of mosquitoes, according to new research published last week in Scientific Reports. Going into the experimental trial, the British biotech company running the project, Oxitec, assured the public that this wouldn’t happen. Consequently, the incident is raising concerns about the safety of this and similar experiments and our apparent inability to accurately predict the outcomes.

New York to See Release of GMO Murder-Moths

Um complexo recém-inaugurado de fabricação de mosquitos, em Campinas, interior de São Paulo, está disponibilizando duas tecnologias complementares comprovadamente eficazes na redução da transmissão da dengue e na supressão das populações do Aedes aegypti. A nova instalação terá capacidade para fornecer até 190 milhões de ovos de mosquitos com Wolbachia por semana, o suficiente para proteger até…

    بيل غيتس يطلق أكثر من مليار بعوضة معدلة وراثيا ويروج لها بحجة القضاء على الملاريا بالكامل، بدأت شركة “Oxitec” المتخصصة في التقنية الحيوية بتمويل لنشر البعوض في جميع أنحاء العالم.   قالت شركة “Oxitec” المتخصصة في التقنية الحيوية أنها تعدل ذكور البعوض وراثياً، حتى تلقح الإناث لينتج نسلا إناث ميتة وذكور لا تلدغ البشر. اختبارات أمنة وقال بيل غيتس “أن الاختبارات اتثبتت أن التعديل أمن على الطبيعة،…

With the topic of biotic threats to our environment fresh in our minds, I'd like to take a look at one vector that could bring harm OR provide benefit to humanity if we seek to use this science for greater good. To explore this concept, I will focus on Aedes Aegypti [yellow fever mosquito] which spreads diseases like yellow fever, dengue fever, and Zika fever. We'll look at two cases: one exploring Aedes Aegypti for biological warfare, and one as a means of preventing disease. First, let’s look at the bad.In 1965, the U.S. Military dropped over 300,000 Aedes Aegypti over Georgia to evaluate the use of dispersion of mosquitoes as a method of entomological warfare. Here are some excerpts from an unclassified report on the subject by William H. Rose.

This experiment, called "Operation Big Buzz", concluded that the A. aegypti was estimated to be the "most likely antipersonnel EW system that could be used against the US", and while Rose's document also included defense measures, the implications of such a test are clear. Big Buzz proved the ability of our government [and other state actors] to produce and distribute this disease vector. While such an attack is prohibited under the Biological Weapons Convention, it may seem like Aedes Aegypti have only destructive scientific applications.

But the UK-based biotech company Oxitec has different ideas for A. Aegypti, as plans for the release of 750 million genetically modified mosquitoes in 2021 have recently been approved by the EPA as well as local authorities in the Florida Keys. Oxitec’s modified mosquitoes [OX5034] are all male, so they don’t bite humans, but they will breed with the local population. They carry a protein that will inhibit survival of female offspring when passed on, thus reducing A. Aegypti populations.[Graphic by Oxitec]

While Oxitec anticipates no adverse effects on humans or animals from the drop, media reports in Florida quote residents already worried about OX5034, and environmental groups have stated worries about unforeseen effects on endangered species that feed on mosquitoes. Concerns for insects as bioweapons are thus met with modern scientists looking to harness the A. Aegypti to combat disease. As further Oxitec research is conducted, it will be hard to ignore the power of this genetically-modified vector whether used for good or for ill.

The burden to ensure that these new concerns and applications for entomological technology are used correctly then falls upon an informed public, so that research like Oxitec's may be used to eradicate deadly diseases and save human lives rather than cause harm. Rather than falling for news that promotes hysteria regarding this misunderstood science, I encourage all of us to further explore what might be possible if technology like this can be better researched, funded, and safely implemented in our society.

[Sources Below]