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CRISPR Allelic-Drive Switch Renders Mosquitoes Unable to Transmit Malaria
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO AND COLLABORATING INSTITUTIONS, JUL 22 – The gene-editing technique changes one amino acid in mosquitoes to block malaria transmission while preserving mosquito survival and reproduction, potentially reducing infection rates by 90%, researchers say.
- On Wednesday in Nature, researchers at University of California San Diego, Johns Hopkins University, UC Berkeley and University of São Paulo reported a genetic method that blocks malaria transmission.
- Insecticide and drug resistance have stalled recent malaria control efforts, and in 2023 mosquitoes infected 263 million people resulting in nearly 600,000 deaths.
- Biologists Zhiqian Li, Ethan Bier, Yuemei Dong and George Dimopoulos employed a CRISPR-based gene-editing system to change a single molecule in mosquitoes, and the L224-to-Q224 switch blocked two parasite species from reaching their salivary glands.
- The system is designed to spread the malaria resistance trait through mosquito populations, and `These mosquitoes will spread on their own and gradually transform the malaria-transmitting mosquito population to one that cannot transmit malaria,` says George Dimopoulos.
- With a single, precise tweak the modification blocks multiple malaria parasite species across diverse mosquito populations, and researchers created a gene-drive-like technique for offspring to inherit the Q224 allele and spread it.
23 Articles
23 Articles
New method genetically blocks mosquitoes from transmitting malaria
Mosquitoes kill more people each year than any other animal. In 2023, the blood-sucking insects infected a reported 263 million people with malaria, leading to nearly 600,000 deaths, 80% of which were children.
Did researchers, including UC San Diego scientists, just solve global malaria problem?
A team of scientists, including researchers at UC San Diego, have developed a gene-editing method to block mosquitoes from spreading malaria, it was announced Wednesday. Biologists Zhiqian Li and Ethan Bier from UCSD, and Yuemei Dong and George Dimopoulos from Johns Hopkins University, created a CRISPR-based gene-editing system that “changes a single molecule within mosquitoes, a minuscule but effective change...
Genetic tweak in mosquitoes blocks malaria transmission without affecting insect health
Mosquitoes kill more people each year than any other animal. In 2023, the blood-sucking insects infected a reported 263 million people with malaria, leading to nearly 600,000 deaths, 80% of which were children.
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