Genomes and synthetic biology for development of novel pest control technologies

Oxitec是应用合成生物学控制害虫的世界领先者。Oxitec的RIDL®技术依赖于大规模饲养的转基因雄性昆虫的释放，这些雄性昆虫与野生害虫交配，从而导致种群数量下降。RIDL对登革热蚊子的疗效已被证明。埃及伊蚊，使巴西野生种群减少了约96%。当前技术的一个代价高昂的方面是，只选择雄性放生，这一点很重要，因为雌性吸血和传播疾病。该项目旨在开发一种新的方法来生产仅限雄性的RIDL蚊子群(基因性别鉴定)，这种方法将显著降低成本，并巩固Oxitec在该领域的领导地位。将分析下一代测序数据集，以帮助开发Ae的新RIDL特征。埃及伊蚊，以提高我们技术在该领域的应用效率。有针对性的生物信息学方法的发展，以及一种新的遗传性别鉴定技术的成功设计，将为开发其他对公共卫生和农业重要的害虫的新的RIDL性状提供一条管道。

Oxitec is the world leader in application of synthetic biology to control of pest insects. Oxitec’s RIDL® technology relies on release of mass-reared genetically sterile (transgenic) male insects that mate with their wild pest counterparts, thereby causing a drop in population. RIDL efficacy is proven against the dengue mosquito, Ae. aegypti, reducing wild populations in Brazil by ca. 96%. A costly aspect of current technology is the means of selecting males only for release, important as the females blood-feed and transmit disease. This project aims to develop a novel method of producing male-only cohorts of RIDL mosquitoes (‘genetic sexing’) that would both markedly reduce costs and cement Oxitec’s leadership in the field. Next-generation sequencing datasets will be analysed to help develop new RIDL traits in Ae. aegypti mosquitoes, to increase the efficiency of applying our technology in the field. Development of targeted bioinformatics methodology, and successful engineering of a novel genetic sexing technique, will provide a pipeline for development of new RIDL traits in other pests important for public health and agriculture.