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HONORS 220B
Paper 2
compared to wild-type mosquitoes, allowing them to easily pass down their resistance genes from
generation to generation.
Thus far, attempts to prevent the spread of malaria have involved bed nets, anti-malarial drugs,
and insecticides, among others. The cost of these interventions, however, has prevented them from
achieving their maximum effectiveness. Researchers have begun considering an alternative approach
to combat malaria, which is to replace natural mosquito populations with genetically modified (GM)
mosquitoes resistant to the malaria parasite Plasmodium. How can GM mosquitoes successfully
introduce and increase Plasmodium resistance in natural mosquito populations? Pike et al. (2017)
hypothesized that changing the mating preferences of GM mosquitoes would increase the overall
more offspring to have the resistant genes, then mosquito populations should become increasingly
increasing the expression of immune genes in the mosquitoes midguts. They then compared the strains
fitness to that of wild-type mosquitoes and created a mosquito population that was half GM and half
wild-type. Every generation, they measured the proportion of GM mosquitoes in the population and
plotted the proportions on a line graph. To assess GM mosquitoes mating preferences, they drew upon
previous research showing that fruit flies mating preferences change based on the composition of their
microbiota. Since increased immune gene expression in the midgut would affect GM mosquitoes
microbiota, Pike et al. tested whether or not GM mosquitoes had different mating preferences than
wild-type mosquitoes. They measured how often GM mosquitoes preferred either wild-type or GM
mates, did the same with wild-type mosquitoes, and summarized their results in bar graphs. If their
hypothesis was correct, they would see mating preferences that favor GM mosquitoes, which would
result in a higher proportion of GM mosquitoes in the end population (Figure 1). If their hypothesis
was incorrect, they would see that mating preferences that favor GM mosquitoes would not increase
type mosquitoes, as they had similar lifespans and laid the same number of eggs (Figure 2). As for
mating preferences, GM males preferred to mate with wild-type females and wild-type males preferred
to mate with GM females (Figure 3). Lastly, GM mosquitoes comprised 90% of the population after
just one generation, and maintained this proportion for the next nine generations (Figure 4).
The results were consistent with Pike et al.s hypothesis. From the results, one can infer that
GM mosquitoes increased immune resistance altered their microbiota, which in turn changed their
mating preferences. Ultimately, the shift in mating preferences allowed GM mosquitoes to dominate
the population over time. One of the biggest unknowns is whether or not GM mosquitoes would
maintain the same mating preferences in nature instead of in a laboratory setting. A next step could be
to repeat the experiment in a more natural setting, observing if GM mosquitoes mating preferences
change and if they are still effective at replacing wild-type mosquitoes in a population.
populations may be effective in reducing malarial infections, releasing them into the wild is too risky
at this moment. So far, there is little research on how GM mosquitoes behave in the wild, which means
that they may pose risks in natural settings that researchers are not yet aware of. For instance, GM
mosquitoes may become vectors for other diseases, which they could easily transmit to humans.
Furthermore, Plasmodia may evolve to overcome GM mosquitoes increased immune function, which
would not only reignite the spread of malaria but also make malaria much tougher to eradicate. It may
be ethically questionable to not use a potentially very effective intervention, but it is just as
questionable to start using the intervention without a full risk assessment. Researchers should be in no
hurry to release GM mosquitoes into malaria-afflicted regions; they should take as much time as they
need in showing that the short- and long-term benefits of using GM mosquitoes far outweigh the costs.
Figures
% GM
0.6 for GM
% GM
0.4 weak/no
0.4
weak/no preference
preference 0.2 for GM
0.2 for GM
0 0
1 6 1 6
Generation Generations
Figure 1 Predictions under the hypothesis and the null hypothesis. If the hypothesis is correct, mating
preferences that favor GM mosquitoes should result in GM mosquitoes making up most of the
population. If the hypothesis is incorrect, mating preferences that favor GM mosquitoes would not
increase the proportion of GM mosquitoes in the population.
Figure 4 Proportion of GM mosquitoes in the population over ten generations. After one generation,
the proportion of GM mosquitoes was 90%, which stayed relatively constant over the next few
generations. Source: Pike et al. (2017)
Citations
Pike, A., Dong, Y., Dizaji, N. B., Gacita, A., Mongodin, E. F., & Dimopoulos, G. (2017). Changes in