ABC Mosquito Control

Dr Kevin Gorman

Oxitec Ltd, UKThe views and opinions expressed in this presentation are those of the author and do not

necessarily reflect the official policy or position of WSAID, The Miami Science Museum or any agency in

Florida or the U.S. government. There have been limited field trials with this technique. Assumptions

made within the presentation are not reflective of the position of WSAID, the Miami Science Museum, the Florida government or any U.S. government entity.

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What is the most dangerous animal on

earth?

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A shark?

A lion?

A venomous snake?

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No - it’s the mosquito!

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Mosquitoes kill over1 million people in the

world every year…

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...they have a huge impact on human health

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Mosquito borne diseases:

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Mosquito borne diseases:

Malaria

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Mosquito borne diseases:

Dengue

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Mosquito borne diseases:

Yellow fever

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Mosquito borne diseases:

Chikungunya

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Mosquito borne diseases:

Japanese

encephalitis

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Mosquito borne diseases:

and many more!

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the problem

So how do we usually control mosquitoes?

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the problem

We put insecticides in the water

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the problem

…and spray chemicals in

the air

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the problem

We spray some more…

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the problem

and some more…Photo courtesy of Nathan Benn

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the problem

…but Dengue is

still increasing

!

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the problem

2.5 billion people in the worldare at risk

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the problem

No vaccine

No medication

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the solution

We CAN do better……a solution is ready

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the solution

We can use ABC

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the solution

Autocidal Biological Control

The pest controls itself!

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the solution

Male mosquitoes do not biteor spread disease

Onlyfemales do…

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the solution

We can genetically change males…

…so they carry a lethal gene…and so we

can recognise them

TET

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the solution

Wild x Wild

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the solution

Transgenic x Wild

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the solution

More transgenic male mosquitoes means faster

control

Pop

ulat

ion

No treatment

Sterile males

More

sterile males

Time

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the solution

It is effective

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the solution

Transgenic males mate only with wild female mosquitoes…

of the same species

…other species

are unaffected

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the solution

It is effectiveand environmentally

friendly

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the solution

A breakthrough in genetics providing a simple, effective

and sustainable solution

Thank you!

ABC– a novel approach to mosquito management