In:
eLife, eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd, Vol. 7 ( 2018-06-19)
Abstract:
Gene drive is a genetic engineering technology that can spread a particular suite of genes throughout a population. Among the types of gene drive systems, those based on the CRISPR genome editing technology are predicted to be able to spread genes particularly rapidly. This is because components of the CRISPR system can be tailored to replace alternative copies of a particular gene, ensuring that only the desired version is passed on to offspring. In this way, for example, a gene that prevents mosquitoes from carrying or transmitting the malaria parasite could be introduced to a very large wild population to reduce the incidence of the disease among humans. Gene drives can be “self-propagating” or “self-exhausting”: the former are designed so that they can always spread as long as there are wild organisms around, whereas the latter are expected to lose their ability to spread over time. Self-propagating CRISPR gene drives have been shown to work in controlled populations of fruit flies, mosquitoes and yeast. These experiments happen in a controlled environment in the laboratory, so the organisms edited to have the gene drive elements do not come in contact with susceptible wild organisms. However, if just a few were to escape, the gene drive could theoretically spread quickly outside the laboratory. Noble, Adlam et al. investigated, using mathematical models, whether or not – and how fast – a self-propagating CRISPR-based gene drive would spread if a number of organisms with the gene-drive elements were released into the wild. The models showed that the release of just a few of the edited organisms would result in the gene drive spreading to most populations that interbreed. This happened regardless of the structure of the wild populations or whether a degree of resistance to the drive emerged. As a result, even the smallest breach of a contained trial could lead to significant gene drive spread in the wild. The findings suggest that self-propagating gene drive technologies would be most useful where the invasion of most wild populations of the target species is the intended purpose, rather than a risk to be avoided. As a result, a self-propagating CRISPR-based gene drive could be well suited to spreading among mosquitoes to impede the malaria parasite, provided there were strong international agreements in place. The findings also underline the difficulty of carrying out safe field trials of self-propagating gene drives, and the need for very tight control of laboratories carrying out experiments in this field. Lastly, they highlight the importance of developing and testing the evolutionary stability of self-exhausting gene drives, which could be better contained to local populations.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2050-084X
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.001
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.002
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.003
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.004
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.005
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.006
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.007
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.008
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.009
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.010
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.011
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.012
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.013
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.014
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.015
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.016
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.017
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.018
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.020
DOI:
10.7554/eLife.33423.021
Language:
English
Publisher:
eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd
Publication Date:
2018
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2687154-3
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