Skip to main content
Fig. 24 | Malaria Journal

Fig. 24

From: Systematic identification of plausible pathways to potential harm via problem formulation for investigational releases of a population suppression gene drive to control the human malaria vector Anopheles gambiae in West Africa

Fig. 24

Pathway 22 Human health: Potentially altered anatomy in dsxFCRISPRh transgenics could lead them to vector human disease not previously vectored by Anopheles gambiae. This pathway is about the efficiency of transmission, so any change in anatomical characteristics in the transgenics may increase the biting or probing rates or might increase the disease transmission rates. As dsxFCRISPRh transgenic mosquitoes have reported anatomical alterations [17], the analysis plan includes examination of anatomical structures implicated in disease transmission [102]. The potential harm outlined here envisages a ‘worst case scenario’ where there would be increased disease in humans caused by increased vectorial capacity, despite decreases in overall mosquito densities via population suppression from the gene drive. The components of vectorial capacity (V) that would be affected in this pathway are shown in red in the equation

Back to article page