#México: A Regulatory Structure for Working with Genetically Modified Mosquitoes

Sustainable and effective control of dengue is hampered due to a number of factors, including the lack of evidence-based, locally relevant interventions; insufficient information regarding key components of virus transmission and vector ecology; failure to implement precise and efficient surveillance systems; inefficient healthcare systems; ineffective health promotion and outreach resulting in lack of community dialogue and participation; and a paucity of efficient diagnostic strategies and clinical attention. Increased research efforts in response to the complexity of this problem have focused on the development of novel technologies that would enhance existing tools for vector-borne disease prevention. Genetic strategies to reduce or replace mosquito populations and thereby interrupt transmission of dengue viruses are among the new approaches being considered. Many of these approaches take advantage of molecular genetic tools to engineer traits that cause lethal phenotypes or confer resistance to the pathogen in the mosquito.
We addressed the regulatory challenges associated with testing a strain of Aedes aegypti engineered to result in population suppression in contained field trials in southwestern Mexico.
REFERENCE:
Ramsey JM et. al. A Regulatory Structure for Working with Genetically Modified Mosquitoes: Lessons from Mexico. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. Mar 2014; 8(3): e2623.

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