Republic of the Philippines

CENTRAL BICOL STATE UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE

Calabanga | Pasacao | Pili | Sipocot

Genetic Manipulation
of Pest

GROUP 6
BSA 2C
INTRODUCTION
Genetic pest management (GPM) methods
involve releasing modified versions of a
pest species to mate with wild pests in the
target area. Proposed for a wide range of
applications in public health, agriculture and
conservation, most progress has been
made with pest insects.
Genetic Manipulation of Pest
Reduce the fitness of the pest directly, or
indirectly in order to decrease or eradicate
the population.
Sterile insect technique / release method (SIT) /
(SIR)
1. Mass rearing of the target insect
species (males)

2. Sterilizing the insects with ionizing

radiation or chemosterilants.

3. Releasing in large enough

numbers to reduce the probability
of successful matings in the wild
population.
Edward F. Knipling
 The SIT was first described by E. F.
Knipling in 1955.

 Best-known for his work to eradicate

screwworm flies in Texas. Screwworms
"I wanted to contribute
were eliminated in a span of only seven to agriculture in ways
weeks, saving the domestic goat herds other than pulling a
that were source of meat and milk for the cotton sack down the
row."
island people (1954).
Some success stories…
Screwworm fly (Cochliomyia
hominivorax)- eradicated from the
United States (1950s-90s),
Netherland (Curaçao, 1954) and
Libya (1990-92)

Mexican fruit fly (Anastrepha

ludens) eradicated from most of
northern Mexico.
Tsetse fly eradicated from Zanzibar
(1970–1990s).

Medfly (Ceratitis capitata)- eradicated

from northern part of Chile and
southern part of Peru and southern
part of Mexico (1970s–80s)

Sweet potato weevil (Cylas

formicarius) eradicated from Kume
Island, Okinawa, Japan (1994-99).
 SEXIER STERILE INSECTS
Giving the sterile males more sex appeal.

Prof. Boaz Yuval of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's

of Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and
Environment noted the process of rearing millions of male
insects, sterilizing them and transporting them to the
release site can severely affect their sexual
competitiveness, so he study the behavior and psychology
of fruit flies and mosquito.
Kills natural bacteria
Pseudomonas
Breakfast of champion
What are the advantages of SIT?
 Creates inverse density-dependent feedback, making it more
efficient as the wild population decreases.

 The only PM tactic whose fundamental objective is to drive a wild

population to extinction.

 Specific

 Environmentally-friendly
 Does not contaminate natural food chain
 No threat/harm to human health has so far been reported
 What are the limitations of SIT?
 Geography. The eradication zone must have either natural barriers
(e.g., oceans, deserts, mountains) or defensible borders to prevent
or reduce the immigration of the target pest from outside.

 Economics. Cost of rearing, sterilizing, and releasing a large

numbers of insects can be very high and needs to be justified (EIL).

 Desirability of sterile males. The lab-reared and sterilized males

must be equally or more competitive than the native males in
mating with the native females. They may become less desirable
after many generations and need renewal.
 Knowledge about the pest. reproductive behavior, population
dynamics, dispersal, and ecology of the insect.

 Accurate estimation of the native population density

 Timing. The development of the lab-reared colony must be

synchronous with that of the wild population.

 Resistance. Native females may be able to recognize and

refuse to mate with sterile males.
 Inherited / delayed sterility
 An alternative genetic strategy to SIT:
 requires fewer insects
 requires lower doses of radiation

 Released insects are fertile but their progeny are sterile.

 Genetic alterations induced by low dose radiation

 Reciprocal translocations
 genetic transformation with a conditional lethal trait
The concept of Population displacement
 What may be the issues of completely eliminating a pest species
from an ecosystem?
 upsets the balance at higher trophic levels, food webs
 secondary pest
 The idea of Population displacement is that we are not just
eliminating the native pest species (AA) but replace it with a
genetically translocated counterpart (TT), in which AA and TT are
both fertile
 Only the hybrid (AT) would be sterile
 Replacement occurs If TT >> AA in the wild
 TT strains would have more preferable traits
 E.g. less damaging to crop, more sensitive to insecticides,
environmental stress, "booby trap" chemicals.
 WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF SIT?
 Creates inverse density-dependent feedback, making it more
efficient as the wild population decreases.

 The only PM tactic whose fundamental objective is to drive a wild

population to extinction.

 Specific

 Environmentally-friendly
 Does not contaminate natural food chain
 No threat/harm to human health has so far been reported
REFERENCES:
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33357053/#:~:text=Genetic%20pe
st%20management%20(GPM)%20methods,been%20made%20with
%20pest%20insects.
• https://www.slideshare.net/KarlLouisseObispo/genetic-manipulatio
n-of-pest-62019433
• https://courses.cit.cornell.edu/ipm444/07GenManPest/Wong.ppt
Thank you!
 GROUP MEMBERS
• Bongalos, Baby Jane
• Carisma, Jerico
• Christy, Raymundo
• Dacillo, Angeline
• Padrigone, Maria Katrina
• Samudio, Mary Grace
• Villablanca, Babyjane