To tackle malaria, you need to think dangerously. **
"I'm not aware of any other technology where one person can affect so many others without their consent," says Kevin Esvelt, associate professor at the MIT Media Lab. Esvelt, 34, specialises in gene drives, a system that ensures man-made genetic alterations are passed on indefinitely, to alter species on a global scale.
Esvelt's team is working on ways to better control this powerful tool. In the case of malaria, inserting a gene drive into the Anopheles mosquito could wipe the disease from existence. That's not something Esvelt intends to do, but he's laying the groundwork for future projects. It might sound tempting - but acting without knowing the consequences could irreversibly alter the global ecosystem.
A gene drive could be released by 2024, he says, but there are huge moral and practical concerns. "It's hubris to say we can predict what will happen," says Esvelt. "There's no ethical solution. We must either sacrifice informed consent or children's lives."
To prepare for taking on malaria, Esvelt is heading to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. The scattering of islands off the coast of Massachusetts is a hotbed for Lyme disease, a less lethal but still serious infection that affects 300,000 Americans every year.
The small-scale trial on the local white-footed mouse population, the main reservoir of Lyme disease, could eradicate the condition locally by releasing mice that carry native mouse antibodies. By isolating antibody-encoding genes from immunized mice, Esvelt hopes to encode a solution to the Lyme disease problem in the mouses germline. The first test, scheduled for around 2024, will likely take place on an uninhabited island.
If the trial is successful, the next step could be to introduce a daisy drive on the mainland. This version of a gene drive is limited in how far it can spread. Esvelt describes it as a "multi-stage genetic rocket" - as each element falls away, the drive becomes less and less powerful until it runs out of fuel. Such a system would be easier to control and stop genetic changes spreading too far.
Trials with such powerful technologies have raised concerns, but Esvelt is determined that being open can help people make informed decisions. "We approached the community before we sought funding or did experiments - we want them to play a guiding role," he says. "The number-one rule is that everything is in the open. And that's a model for the rest of science too."
Updated 20.04.17: This article has been updated to correct a number of errors. The initial trial in Nantucket will not involve a daisy drive and is likely to take place in 2021, not 2024. A gene drive could be released by 2024, not 2026. Lyme disease afflicts 300,000 Americans, not 25,000. A clarification has also been made to make it clear that Esvelt is not working directly with mosquitos.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
