As the Screwworm Returns to Texas, Colossal Biosciences Proposes Gene-Drive Technology to End the Fight

Colossal Biosciences is proposing gene-drive technology to eliminate the New World screwworm in the United States, Entrepreneur reported in June. The proposal followed the parasite’s detection in a three-week-old calf in Zavala County, Texas, the first on the U.S. mainland in decades. For sixty years, the country has relied on the sterile insect technique, which demands a continuous supply of billions of sterilized flies.

A gene drive is a single edit to the fly’s genome that passes to virtually every offspring instead of half. Colossal’s approach produces infertile females, so the trait spreads from generation to generation until the population collapses. Colossal calls it “genetic biocontrol” and says gene-drive flies could clear an infested zone in a matter of months. Regulators have never cleared a gene drive for open release in the U.S., and ecological questions remain.

This story is based on original reporting by Logan Simmons for Entrepreneur. Read the full feature on Entrepreneur → https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/a-dallas-biotech-says-it-can-wipe-out-the-flesh-eating-screwworm-in-the-u-s