ABOVE: Injection of toxic proteins from male insects into females during mating altered their fitness, which could control disease-spreading female m

Genetically Engineered Male Insects Shorten Their Mates’ Lifespans

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2025-01-18 22:30:03

ABOVE: Injection of toxic proteins from male insects into females during mating altered their fitness, which could control disease-spreading female mosquito population. iStock, Milton Rodney Buzon

O n a still night, as the air is thick with silence, the sharp, whining buzz of a mosquito shatters the calm. These blood-sucking insects that disturb people’s deep slumber are also responsible for spreading diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, malaria and Zika fever, which affect millions of people each year worldwide.

Given the harmful effects of pesticides on the environment, combined with the emergence of mosquitoes resistant to pesticides, scientists are looking for alternative environment-friendly approaches for pest management.1,2

Now, researchers have developed a new population control method where male insects carrying toxic proteins can poison disease-spreading females during mating.3 The results, published in Nature Communications, describe a genetic biocontrol method that offers a fast and effective solution to managing pests.