Gene-drive suppression of mosquito populations in large cages as a bridge between lab and field

Andrew Hammond, Paola Pollegioni, Tania Persampieri, Ace North, Roxana Minuz, Alessandro Trusso, Alessandro Bucci, Kyros Kyrou, Ioanna Morianou, Alekos Simoni, Tony Nolan (), Ruth Müller () and Andrea Crisanti ()
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Andrew Hammond: Imperial College London
Paola Pollegioni: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Tania Persampieri: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Ace North: University of Oxford
Roxana Minuz: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Alessandro Trusso: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Alessandro Bucci: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Kyros Kyrou: Imperial College London
Ioanna Morianou: Imperial College London
Alekos Simoni: Imperial College London
Tony Nolan: Imperial College London
Ruth Müller: Polo d’Innovazione di Genomica Genetica e Biologia
Andrea Crisanti: Imperial College London

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract CRISPR-based gene-drives targeting the gene doublesex in the malaria vector Anopheles gambiae effectively suppressed the reproductive capability of mosquito populations reared in small laboratory cages. To bridge the gap between laboratory and the field, this gene-drive technology must be challenged with vector ecology. Here we report the suppressive activity of the gene-drive in age-structured An. gambiae populations in large indoor cages that permit complex feeding and reproductive behaviours. The gene-drive element spreads rapidly through the populations, fully supresses the population within one year and without selecting for resistance to the gene drive. Approximate Bayesian computation allowed retrospective inference of life-history parameters from the large cages and a more accurate prediction of gene-drive behaviour under more ecologically-relevant settings. Generating data to bridge laboratory and field studies for invasive technologies is challenging. Our study represents a paradigm for the stepwise and sound development of vector control tools based on gene-drive.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24790-6

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