Synthetic reduced-vector-competence traits in Aedes aegypti

Vector-borne diseases, mostly mosquito-borne, account for >17% of all infectious diseases of humans. Disease caused by ARthropod-BOrne viruses (arboviruses, e.g. dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses) continue to escalate, the burden falling overwhelmingly on Low-and-Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and likely exacerbated by climate change affecting mosquito distribution. These ‘neglected tropical diseases’ impact development, e.g. Millennium Development Goals, as well as their direct human burden. Arboviruses are also among the key emerging infectious diseases/priority diseases of epidemic potential. New cost-effective, sustainable, environmentally-friendly methods for controlling arboviruses are sorely needed. Here we propose to develop broad-spectrum anti-viral traits in engineered mosquitoes. By “broad-spectrum” we mean active against multiple arboviruses, in contrast to the current state of the art for synthetic anti-viral (“reduced vector competence”) traits, RNAi-based systems which provide resistance only against specific viruses or virus strains. This is important for vectors such as Aedes aegypti, which can transmit a range of important viral pathogens. Such tools could be delivered to wild vector populations via mating between released modified mosquitoes and wild mosquitoes. These methods are egalitarian – everyone within the protected area is equally protected, irrespective of wealth, ethnicity, gender, education etc.