Abstract
There is a pressing need for novel control techniques in agricultural weed management. Direct genetic control of agricultural pests encompasses a range of techniques to introduce and spread novel, fitness‐reducing genetic modifications through pest populations. Recently, the development of CRISPR–Cas9 gene editing has brought these approaches into sharper focus. Proof of concept for CRISPR–Cas9‐based gene drives has been demonstrated for the control of disease‐vectoring insects. This article considers whether and how gene drives may be applied in agricultural weed management, focusing on CRISPR–Cas9‐based systems. Population‐suppression drives might be employed to introduce and proliferate deleterious mutations that directly impact fitness and weediness, whereas population‐sensitizing drives would seek to edit weed genomes so that populations are rendered more sensitive to subsequent management interventions. Technical challenges relating to plant transformation and gene editing in planta are considered, and the implementation of gene drives for timely and sustainable weed management is reviewed in the light of weed population biology. The technical, biological, practical and regulatory challenges remain significant. Modelling‐based studies can inform how and if gene drives could be employed in weed populations. These studies are an essential first step towards determining the utility of gene drives for weed management. © 2018 The Author. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Highlights
The potential for human-mediated, genetic interventions to aid in the suppression and control of insect populations that negatively impact agriculture and human health has been recognized since the 1940s
The potential application of gene drive systems for the reversal of resistance to herbicides has been highlighted,[4,5,6,7,8] to date, there is no systematic review of the potential applications and constraints of these systems for weed management
I consider the need for novel genetic control strategies in agricultural weed management and, in that context, the potential application, practicability, limitations and constraints of gene drives
Summary
The potential for human-mediated, genetic interventions to aid in the suppression and control of insect populations that negatively impact agriculture and human health has been recognized since the 1940s (for reviews see Leftwich et al and Gould[1,2]). This article briefly considers the historical development of genetic control technologies for insect pests, including recent proofs of concept for synthetic gene drives that control insects vectoring human disease. I consider the need for novel genetic control strategies in agricultural weed management and, in that context, the potential application, practicability, limitations and constraints of gene drives. Has become dominated by the application of synthetic pesticides This approach has met with notable success, significantly reducing crop yield losses and saving lives through the enhanced control of insect vectors of human disease.
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