Gene Drive Supplement (August 31, 2022)

ISAAA Inc., in partnership with the Outreach Network for Gene Drive Research, launched a policy brief that tackles the importance of science-based and case-by-case risk assessment for gene drives.

Socio-economic Impact Assessment Complements Risk Assessment of Gene Drive Organisms, According to Experts

ISAAA Inc., the Outreach Network for Gene Drive Research , and the ISAAA Biotechnology Information Centers Network conducted the webinar Integrating social, economic and health aspects into the decision-making process on July 28, 2022, via Zoom. It is the third and final part of the 2022 Gene Drive Webinar Series. The webinar aimed to give an overview of the different dimensions of gene drive impact and risk assessments, including environmental and socio-economic aspects.

Scientists Turn to Gene Editing to Manage Invasive Species

The environmental and economic costs caused by invasive species in the United States are estimated at more than US$120 billion per year. Invasive species quickly spread as they have few or no natural predators. Introduced non-native insects can decimate crops and forests, and invasive rodents are also disruptive, particularly on island ecosystems, where they are the leading cause of plant and animal extinctions. In the U.S., exotic plant pests and diseases threaten food security, quality of life, and the economy.

Modeling Study Features Safe, Confined Gene Drive Using Wolbachia Cytoplasmic Alleles

Scientists from Peking University in China developed a highly confined gene drive model that involves the CifA and CifB genes found in the Wolbachia phage. They proposed new types of toxin-antidote gene drives that can be constructed with the genes using the information that no viable offspring is produced if a male with both the CifA and CifB mates with a female that has no CifA in her.

Study Helps Define Target Organisms of Gene Drive in Species Complexes

Researchers from Target Malaria and partners presented the implications of gene drive applications in a ‘species complex' such as mosquito Anopheles gambiae s.l. in a paper published in Trends in Biotechnology.

Impact of Combining Gene Drive and Traditional Vector Controls in Eliminating Malaria

Gene drive, together with traditional vector control measures, provides a powerful combination in eliminating malaria within the Sahel region located in sub-Saharan Africa. This is according to a modeling study conducted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Imperial College London published in the Malaria Journal.

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