Abstract
BackgroundGene drive mosquitoes have been proposed as a possible means to reduce the transmission of malaria in Africa. Because this technology has no prior use-history at this time, environmental risk assessments for gene drive mosquitoes will benefit from problem formulation—an organized and ordered process to identify protection goals and potential pathways to harm to the environment, or animal or human health. Recognizing this need, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), with support from African and international partners, organized four regional consultative workshops in Africa to initiate this process.MethodsThe workshops were attended by a diverse set of participants and stakeholders, including scientists, ethicists, health professionals, government regulators in the fields of environment health and biosafety as well government policymakers, who met for 4 days to deliberate on protection goals and pathways relevant to the use of gene drive mosquitoes for malaria control. The goal of the workshops was not to produce a comprehensive and detailed environmental risk assessment of gene drive mosquitoes, but rather to introduce problem formulation as a tool to the stakeholder community, and to serve as a starting point for conducting systematic environmental risk assessments in the future, identifying protection goals related to gene drive mosquitoes that are particular to African stakeholders.ResultsParticipants in the workshops frequently identified human health and biodiversity as being relevant broad protection goals. Results of the deliberations provide insight into the concerns of African participants at an early stage in the development of gene drive organism/products that should be instructive to developers using this technology.ConclusionsIn general, the African participants of the consultations had a precautionary perspective with regard to environmental risk assessment of gene drive technology. As gene drive technology develops, protection goals will become further refined and candidate products will be further defined. These workshops represent only the beginning of a continuing process that will ultimately inform environmental risk assessment for gene drive mosquitoes to control malaria in Africa.
Highlights
Introduction of the gene drive mosquitoPopulation of An. gambiae declinesEcological niche opens up providing room for the expansion of another vector populationIncreased possibility of disease transmissionOther diseases increaseB Protection goal: human healthGiven Likely Likely Likely Likely
While the results described here will be useful for predicting concerns that may arise in environmental risk assessment for future gene drive technologies, they should in no way be considered as conclusive or representative of a consensus perspective
It is important to point out that the authors are reporting pathways to harm that were identified in break-out groups without prejudice. Participants in these exercises had various levels of prior experience with the process of environmental risk assessment and its significance/role in regulatory decision making, and for many, the workshop represented the first exposure to the science involved in gene drive technology
Summary
Introduction of the gene drive mosquitoPopulation of An. gambiae declinesEcological niche opens up providing room for the expansion of another vector populationIncreased possibility of disease transmissionOther diseases increase (e.g. filariasis, arbovirus, etc.)B Protection goal: human healthGiven Likely Likely Likely Likely. Because this technology has no prior use-history at this time, environmental risk assessments for gene drive mosquitoes will benefit from problem formulation—an organized and ordered process to identify protection goals and potential pathways to harm to the environment, or animal or human health. Recognizing this need, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), with support from African and international partners, organized four regional consultative workshops in Africa to initiate this process.
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