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Biosafety Virtual Library Resources (VLR)
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BCH-VLR-SCBD-266927-2   |   PDF   |   Print   |  
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published: 20 Mar 2024 last updated: 27 May 2024

General information
Guidelines for Importation, Exportation, Handling, Labelling and Storage of Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
EN
African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD)   BCH-ORG-SCBD-266924-1
  • Inter-governmental organization (IGO)
2022-04
EN
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The emergence of gene drive technologies holds prospects for future deployment to significantly improve control and accelerate efforts towards the elimination of malaria. Current approaches can be used to either suppress malaria vector populations or to alter them such that they no longer transmit malaria. Due to the biased inheritance of traits, gene drive modified mosquitoes spread faster than the limits imposed by Mendelian inheritance. There are, however, still many unknowns regarding the safety and field-efficacy of these technologies; thus, further evaluation is necessary for both laboratory and real-field settings. Recent mathematical simulations in West Africa indicated considerable suppression of vector populations could be achieved within a few years of using a female sterility gene drive, though the impact is likely to be heterogeneous in space and time. It was observed that using a CRISPR-Cas9 gene drive to reduce female fertility could result in a 95% decrease in the relevant mosquito population on a regional scale after 4 years of deployment. The actual spread in the wild will likely be patchy and slow, but most available evidence suggests that these gene drives will be highly impactful against malaria even if they themselves are not a silver bullet and are only used to complement existing interventions. Due to the flight nature of mosquitoes, modified mosquitoes could have negative or positive transboundary impacts depending on the expression of the traits they carry. There are, therefore, regional regulatory implications in their deployment. As part of the WA-IVM initiative, a number of guidelines have been created to provide an improved protocol for the prevention of biosafety risks while ensuring beneficial and sustainable applications of gene drive technology. These guidelines refer to multiple processes but also anticipate the potential transboundary movement of gene drive modified mosquitoes (GDMs) and how to address any adverse effects. The guidelines will advance consultations, ethical applications, and sustainable use of GDMs. This specific guideline focuses on procedures around the intentional movement of GDMs, and therefore covers importation, exportation, transfer, labelling, and storage processes
EN
Keywords for facilitating searching for information in the clearing-houses
  • GBF-T17. Strengthen biosafety and distribute benefits of biotechnology
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