Oxitec Insect Control for public health and agriculture

14 Pages·2014·1.43 MB·English

by  Camilla Beech

Oxitec Insect Control for public
health and agriculture
ABIM 2014 (20-22 Oct 2014)
Camilla Beech
© 2014 Oxitec Limited Page 1
Oxitec insect control technology
biological
Combat insect-
through the approach that is
borne diseases
reduction of safe, sustainable,
pest insect economic and
Improve crop
populations applicable to
yields
many insect
species
worldwide
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Why engineer insects for pest control ?
Ne w control solutions
needed for public health
and agriculture
• consumer demand for more
food on less land
• demand for residue
reduction
• changing pest pressures
• fewer available pesticides
• pesticide resistance

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Oxitec introduces two genes
Injecting genes into insect egg Self Limiting Gene Fluorescent Marker Gene
Self Limiting Gene Marker Gene

• Repressed with an antidote during male insect
• Fluorescent Protein detected by special light
production
• Allows track and trace for Oxitec insects
• Passed on to progeny fathered by Oxitec males
• Allows estimation of pest population sizes
• Prevents offspring from developing into
• Allows effective monitoring of pest population
reproductive adults
suppression
• Without continued release disappears from
the gene pool and environment
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Our approach
Oxitec technology disrupts the reproductive cycle of pest insects
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Oxitec self limiting technology
1st Generation
Oxitec technology is
population control
species specific
• Physical sorting males
• No effects on beneficial
• Effects male and female
insects like bees
offspring, which fail to
• Compatible with Crop
reach adulthood
Protection technology
2nd Generation Male 3nd Generation early
selection population control
• Genetic sorting to give • Genetic sorting to give
males males
• Effects only female • Effects both males and
offspring which fail to female
reach maturity
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Oxitec portfolio
Agriculture Public Health
Target Crop Target Vector of
Citrus/pome/
Medfly Aedes aegypti Dengue
stone fruit
Aedes Chikungunya
Olive fly Olive
albopictus & dengue
Diamondback Anopheles
Brassica Malaria
moth stephensi
In development
Pink
Cotton
bollworm Target Crops
Drosophila
Soft fruit
suzukii
Silkworm Silk
Red flour Stored
beetle products
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Effectiveness

Aedes aegypti
field trials show
greater than
90%
mosquito
suppression

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Key benefits summary
Efficacy
• Reduces insect pest population below disease or economic threshold
• Highly targeted - uses the biological imperative of a male to seek out
females

Control
• Released insects and their progeny die in a few days – providing a self-
limiting or ‘dead end’ strategy
• Simple monitoring using fluorescent protein – provides ‘track and
trace’ and predictive capability

Environment
• Reduce or more effective insecticide use – ideal in IPM programmes
• Species-specific – no impact on beneficial insects
• Does not persist in the environment or crop
• ‘Environmentally preferable’ approach – USDA

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The challenge:
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