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WASHINGTON, June 8 (Xinhua) -- Organisms modified by a genetic engineering technique called gene drive, such as genetically modified mosquitoes used to curb the Zika outbreak, are not ready to be released into the wild, according to a new report released Wednesday by the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
A National Academies committee conducting the study said "insufficient evidence" existed at this time to support such release, noting that more research in laboratories and highly controlled field trials are required.
Gene drive is the practice of stimulating biased inheritance of particular genes to alter entire populations. Preliminary evidence suggested that gene drives developed in the laboratory could spread a targeted gene through nearly 100 percent of a population of yeast, fruit flies or mosquitoes.
According to the report, this technique has the potential to address public health threats, conservation-related issues, agricultural pests, and other challenges.
For example, gene drives might be developed to modify mosquitoes that carry infectious diseases such as dengue, malaria and Zika.
In Brazil, authorities have approved a plan to fight Zika using genetically engineered mosquitoes whose offspring will die before reaching adulthood and being able to reproduce.
In agriculture, a gene drive might be used to control or alter organisms that damage crops or carry crop disease.
On the other hand, some gene-drive modified organisms, said the report, might lead to unintended consequences, such as the unintentional disruption of a non-target species or the establishment of a second, more resilient invasive species.
"The science and technology associated with gene drives is developing very quickly," said Professor James Collins of Arizona State University, who co-chaired the National Academies committee with Elizabeth Heitman of Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
"But before gene-drive modified organisms are put into the environment, our committee urges caution -- a lot more research is needed to understand the scientific, ethical, regulatory, and social consequences of releasing such organisms," Collins said.
Laboratory and field research is needed to refine gene drive mechanisms and better understand how gene drives work, from the molecular level through species and ecosystem levels, the report said.
Meeting this need will require collaboration among multiple fields of study including molecular biology, population genetics, evolutionary biology, and ecology, it said.
In addition, open-access, online data banks and standard operating procedures should be established to share information and guide research design.
"Responsible research on gene drives and gene drive technology requires consideration of values and public engagement throughout the process," said committee co-chair Heitman.
"From conducting basic research, to choosing a problem to address and an organism to modify, to devising strategies to pursue field testing safely, it is essential to examine each gene drive on a case-by-case basis and to engage stakeholders and the public in assessing their potential development," Heitman said.
In selecting sites for potential field testing and environmental releases, the committee recommended that preference be given to locations in countries with existing scientific capacity and governance frameworks to conduct and oversee the safe investigation of gene drives and the development of gene-drive modified organisms.
Meanwhile, each proposed field test or environmental release of a gene-drive modified organism should be subject to robust ecological risk assessment before being approved, the report said.
Kevin Esvelt, assistant professor at the MIT media lab, commended the report, which he said "eloquently covers all of the major issues across many different areas" on gene drive technologies.
"If I had to pick a single take-home, it would be that a one-size-fits-all approach will not work with gene drives because outcomes will depend on the organism, the type of alteration, the ecosystem, and affected communities," Esvelt said. Enditem
