CRISPR-based gene drives generate super-Mendelian inheritance in the disease vector Culex quinquefasciatus

• Published in: Nature communications 2023-11, Vol.14 (1), p.7561-12, Article 7561
• Main Authors: Harvey-Samuel, Tim, Feng, Xuechun, Okamoto, Emily M., Purusothaman, Deepak-Kumar, Leftwich, Philip T., Alphey, Luke, Gantz, Valentino M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 13; 38; 45/22; 45/44; 631/1647/1513/1967/3196; 631/208/4041/3196; 631/61/17/1511; 631/61/338/552; 64; Aedes - genetics; Animals; Aquatic insects; CRISPR; Culex; Culex - genetics; Culex quinquefasciatus; Culicidae; Disease Vectors; Endangered animals; Endangered species; Filariasis; Gene Drive Technology; Health risks; Heredity; Homing; Humanities and Social Sciences; Inheritances; Insecticide resistance; Insecticides; Livestock; Mosquito Vectors - genetics; Mosquitoes; multidisciplinary; Pesticide resistance; Public health; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Transgenes; Vector-borne diseases; Vectors; Viruses; West Nile virus
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41834-1

Culex mosquitoes pose a significant public health threat as vectors for a variety of diseases including West Nile virus and lymphatic filariasis, and transmit pathogens threatening livestock, companion animals, and endangered birds. Rampant insecticide resistance makes controlling these mosquitoes challenging and necessitates the development of new control strategies. Gene drive technologies have made significant progress in other mosquito species, although similar advances have been lagging in Culex . Here we test a CRISPR-based homing gene drive for Culex quinquefasciatus , and show that the inheritance of two split-gene-drive transgenes, targeting different loci, are biased in the presence of a Cas9-expressing transgene although with modest efficiencies. Our findings extend the list of disease vectors where engineered homing gene drives have been demonstrated to include Culex alongside Anopheles and Aedes , and pave the way for future development of these technologies to control Culex mosquitoes. Culex mosquitoes are carriers of major diseases like West Nile virus and are a public health concern. Here the authors present a CRISPR-Cas9 gene drive as a control technology in the Culex quinquefasciatus mosquito species.