America's Government Approves Release of Genetically-Engineered Mosquitoes
Oxitec's first field trial in Brazil achieved up to a 96% suppression of target disease transmitting mosquito populations in dense urban settings, the company said. But in public comments on the permit approval docket, Jaydee Hanson, policy director at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Food Safety, questioned Oxitec's claims and warned of other possible dangers.
"Most (but not all) of the GE mosquitoes' offspring die at the late larval stage, in the water where the female mosquitoes lay their eggs," Hanson wrote."This partial survival rate, even if low (a reported 3 to 4% in laboratory conditions), would lead to the establishment of hybrid mosquitoes in the environment, which might possess altered properties, including the potential for enhanced disease transmission or resistance to insecticides," Hanson said.
Oxitec's first field trial in Brazil achieved up to a 96% suppression of target disease transmitting mosquito populations in dense urban settings, the company said. But in public comments on the permit approval docket, Jaydee Hanson, policy director at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Food Safety, questioned Oxitec's claims and warned of other possible dangers.
"Most (but not all) of the GE mosquitoes' offspring die at the late larval stage, in the water where the female mosquitoes lay their eggs," Hanson wrote."This partial survival rate, even if low (a reported 3 to 4% in laboratory conditions), would lead to the establishment of hybrid mosquitoes in the environment, which might possess altered properties, including the potential for enhanced disease transmission or resistance to insecticides," Hanson said.
Like clockwork..