This genetic transformation of Wolbachia, a bacterial endosymbiont that can infect each of the major insect orders, has shown the potential to serve as biocontrol for pests and disease vectors. The modified Wolbachia can alter the reproduction of their insect host to favor female offspring and interfere with the transmission of insect-borne pathogens, such as the bacteria spread by the Asian citrus psyllid that causes citrus greening or any number of diseases spread by mosquitoes. Previously, precise genomic manipulation of Wolbachia has proven difficult in cultivating the bacterial species under laboratory conditions.
Researchers at the University of Florida have successfully developed a genomic manipulation system using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to transform Wolbachia with exogenous genes harmful to the host insect (such as the Asian citrus psyllid or disease-carrying mosquito species). The modified bacterium can be reintroduced into the insect host to control the spread of both the insect vector as well as the bacterial pathogens spread by the insect.
Genetically modified Wolbachia to target specific insect species to disrupt the transmission of pathogens by vector insects or to deliver proteins to plants
The Wolbachia genus are obligated endosymbionts of eukaryotic cells. These bacteria, commonly found in arthropods and nematodes, can alter the reproductive patterns of the host. These alterations ultimately lead to an overabundance of females as well as enhancing the fitness of the female population of the given species, ensuring the spread of the bacterium and the reduction of vector competence, effectively controlling the spread of both the insect vector as well as the bacterial pathogens spread by the insect. This unique ability of Wolbachia to drive itself into a population means that insect populations can be modified and controlled through paratransgenesis, rather than by direct transformation.