Posted on 05/31/2019 8:06:13 AM PDT by BenLurkin
A fungus - genetically enhanced to produce spider toxin - can rapidly kill huge numbers of the mosquitoes that spread malaria, a study suggests.
Trials, which took place in Burkina Faso, showed mosquito populations collapsed by 99% within 45 days.
Conducting the study, researchers at the University of Maryland in the US - and the IRSS research institute in Burkina Faso - first identified a fungus called Metarhizium pingshaense, which naturally infects the Anopheles mosquitoes that spread malaria.
The next stage was to enhance the fungus.
They turned to a toxin found in the venom of a species of funnel-web spider in Australia.
The genetic instructions for making the toxin were added to the fungus's own genetic code so it would start making the toxin once it was inside a mosquito.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
But what monster will enhancing the fungus create?
now if we can just find one that will only replicate in a tick’s system- lyme diseases is becoming a huge problem
DDT did a trick on me
Now I am a real sickee
Guess Ill have to spread the news
That Ive got no mind to lose
Labotomy
Runs best in dark, damp conditions.
Well, maybe once she is declawed and housebroken.
Hi.
What will happen to all the insects, reptiles etc food supply if there are no mosquitoes?
5.56mm
HAHAHA! Nice. SciFi much?
I’m no expert but I think that was the heart of the “problem” seen by Rachel Carson and “Silent Spring”.
She wanted to say DDT was bad and that it hurt birds. I think the evidence has shown that DDT is quite harmless and did not do the damage she claimed. The “thinning of eggshells” in particular was a myth. Basically, DDT is effective against insects, as it was intended to be.
But this did disrupt food supplies for birds and may have resulted in changes in bird populations. They weren’t poisoned. They just went somewhere they could find more bugs to eat.
Super at tolerating the venom. Not necessarily super at anything else.I wonder what happened to the idea of releasing sterilized male mosquitoes as a population control??
It is manufactured & exported by China, India and N Korea.
Seems like it would be preferable to GM a mosquito which could reproduce without human blood bites. Whatever good the mosquitoes are doing, they could presumably do just as well without biting people, thus without being a vector for malaria. And without being a blamed nuisance generally.
Man, those surgeons are going to have to have extremely good eyesight and VERY tiny tools to complete that many vasectomies ...
"Seems like it would be preferable to GM a mosquito which could reproduce without human blood bites. Whatever good the mosquitoes are doing, they could presumably do just as well without biting people, thus without being a vector for malaria. And without being a blamed nuisance generally. Actually, thats sort of a description of the male mosquito, which doesnt bite people. Its only the females . . .So the choices for that issue would seem to be either to make females that dont bite, or create masses of male mosquitoes who would fill the niche in competition with the females.
Back when they were talking about it, the idea was to use radiation for the vasectomies.
Of course, but that’s not remotely as funny as imagining rows of surgeons doing the deed ...
Either people did not read the article or they do not understand the meaning of this:
“Our technology is not aiming to drive the extinction of mosquitoes, what we’re aiming to do is break malaria transmission in an area.”
Breaking the transmission means that by collapsing an infected generation of mosquitoes, the succeeding generation will have a lower rate of infection. Repeat this enough times periodically will continue to lower the rate of infection and eventually you will have a malaria free populations of both mosquitoes and humans. The US achieved this before DDT was outlawed because we had the money and infrastructure to get it done.
Theoretically malaria could be eradicated globally like small pox was as long as there is no unreached infected population and no unknown reservoir of parasites in an animal population that could also reinfect the mosquito population and start the cycle all over again.
It’s the new GM Fun Gus bus. For the rest of us.
A solar powered, driverless bus to nowhere.
I hope the 1% left do not multiply very quickly—because they are resistant to the modified stuff-—AND the natural stuff.
Just sayin’
I did not know that. Thanks.
Most likely we’ll end up with a mutated mosquito that injects venom.
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