Science Speaks - Blog by ISAAA

Gene Drives as an Emerging Biotechnology for Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation

By Janine Cyren Escasura
January 15, 2025

ISAAA Inc., in collaboration with the Philippine Agriculture and Fisheries Biotechnology Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA Biotech Program Office), gathered over 180 participants during the webinar Leading Breakthroughs: Gene Drives for a Sustainable Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation on December 9, 2024, via Zoom. The webinar is part of the series intended to provide information on recent developments in new and emerging biotechnology tools and products.

What is Gene Drive?

Citing the definition from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Dr. Maria Genaleen Q. Diaz, a full Professor and currently the Director of the Institute of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences at the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), explained gene drive as a/an:

  • Process or Phenomenon. Gene drive is a process or phenomenon that increases the prevalence of specific genes or traits in a population by promoting their biased inheritance across generations.
  • Material Object. Gene drive is a genetic element or system capable of promoting its biased inheritance within a population.
  • Intention. Gene drive is a tool designed to alter a population by introducing new traits or disrupting target genes through biased inheritance.

Gene drive is one of the innovative strategies designed to spread specific traits in a population of organisms. ISAAA Inc. Executive Director Dr. Rhodora Romero-Aldemita said that gene drives are among the various innovations that help sustain the environment and ensure food security. “This technology offers transformative applications for food, agriculture, health, and biodiversity,” Dr. Aldemita said.

Synthetic Gene Drive, as discussed by Dr. Diaz, is a gene drive system created through recombinant DNA techniques. In this definition, gene drive is viewed as a technology, a set of tools, or a technique. Dr. Diaz said that two basic criteria must be met to foster efficient gene drive: organisms must be sexually producing and must have a short generation time for practicality.

Dr. Diaz further elaborated on different types and uses of gene drives, including homing-based, sex distorter or y-drive, split gene drive, and Maternal Effect Dominant Embryonic Arrest (MEDEA), to target essential genes for population suppression or replacement.

What are the applications of gene drives?

Gene drive technology is known to be used for pest control (e.g., weeds, rodents, and invertebrate species). With the advent of CRISPR, gene editing paved the way for a more efficient and easier gene drive system. Dr. Diaz said that CRISPR is a perfect tool to create gene drives, with most gene drives nowadays being based on gene editing.

While gene drives have been successfully demonstrated in rodents, the team of Prof. Paul Q. Thomas, a Professor in the School of Biomedicine, University of Adelaide and the Director of the Genome Editing Program and the SA Genome Editing Facility at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), conducted a study in 2022 to illustrate the possible outcomes of gene drives to other vertebrates, such as cats and foxes.

Their study confirmed that the application of gene drives in vertebrates is possible. However, it will take much longer to eradicate, ranging from 100 to 250 years for cats and foxes, compared to mice, rats, and rabbits which would only take less than 100 years.

What are the opportunities and challenges of gene drives?

Gene drive is a breakthrough that shows great promise in terms of control of undesirable species (e.g., insects and weeds) and reduction of reliance on pesticides and herbicides. Aside from the previously mentioned applications of gene drives, Prof. Thomas said that gene drives are also now being applied to plants, citing a study that illustrates over 90% transmission bias in plants. Although quite new, Dr. Diaz said that scientists may try to look at different methods of gene drives to progress applications of the technology in agriculture.

Gene drives also face significant challenges in terms of regulation and technical hurdles. As an emerging technology, gene drive is confronted with various biosafety and ethical issues. Therefore, Dr. Diaz said that there is a need for methods to control the spatial and temporal spread of gene drives to reverse their propagation in populations, if necessary. Prof. Thomas also emphasized the need for stakeholder engagement to make the public aware of the emergence of gene drives and generate public support and favorable policy for the technology.

Watch the recorded webinar on the ISAAA Webinars page and YouTube. The webinar series on emerging biotechnologies will have its last session this year, focusing on novel foods. Subscribe to Biotech Updates to stay updated with ISAAA’s upcoming webinars. 

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