Scientists believe that soon will be able to change the DNA of wild mosquitoes - thus becomes much easier to deal with the spread of malaria, informs BBC. If scientists could succeed to spread the required gene between mosquitoes, it's possible to significantly reduce the number of malaria cases.
Academics describe the results as an important achievement.World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that in 2008 more than a million people become the victims of the malaria.
Scientists claim they brought mosquito species resistant to malaria - it was moving into the mosquito body of certain genes that prevent the development of malaria.
Experts acknowledge that their ultimate aim will be simple to implement - the need to ensure that genetically modified mosquitoes can spread the necessary gene to mosquito populations around the world. If the gene will not produce tangible benefits of mosquito, bloodsucking insect population is not only won't spread, but withered away and disappear.
It is true that London's Royal College (UK) and University of Washington (Seattle, USA), the researchers believe they managed to find a solution. The researchers inserted a gene into the mosquito DNA region, which is related to the insect's about taking care of yourself. The exact name of the endonuclease - I-SceI.
Gene promotes a certain enzyme, the DNA separates into two parts, the release. The biological mechanism of cell division, DNA interrupted restoring unity, that includes a gene into DNA. Gene copies spread cells so that they are all male mosquito seed cells. In this way, the gene will inherit all the modified descendants of the mosquito, then - for which posterity, and so on... Under laboratory conditions, half of the gene is spread by mosquitoes in the experimental group and repeats a dozen generations.
Scientists hoping to apply discovered and successfully tried and tested method of genome modification to the other cases too...
