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  • From: Cecile Mills <seaseal@got.net>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] [Fwd: Nonchemical Way to Control Mosquitoes]
  • Date: Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:30:38 -0800

Dear Lawrence,

That's one of the scariest articles I've seen since the one about much of Mexico's 150 species of corn being wiped out by GMO corn pollen that rendered them all sterile.

What is to prevent this DNA from getting loose through a mosquito bite and into us? Or other warm blooded animals?

Cecile
Proposal Writer
Watsonville Farmers Market
seaseal@got.net


On Dec 20, 2007, at 2:49 PM, Lawrence F. London, Jr. wrote:

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Nonchemical Way to Control Mosquitoes
Date: Thu, 20 Dec 2007 09:37:57 -0500
From: ARS News Service <NewsService@ars.usda.gov>
Reply-To: ARS News Service <NewsService@ars.usda.gov>
To: ARS News subscriber <lflj@bellsouth.net>

STORY LEAD:
New Nonchemical Approach to Curbing Mosquitoes
___________________________________________

ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Sharon Durham, (301) 504-1611, sharon.durham@ars.usda.gov
December 20, 2007
--View this report online, plus photos and related stories, at www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr
___________________________________________

Most pesticides are toxic to insects and humans alike, but a molecular pesticide developed by Agricultural Research
Service (ARS) scientists may provide a new way to deal with mosquito pests without causing a risk to human health.

The molecular pesticide technology would also overcome the mosquito's ability to develop resistance to particular
pesticides. A molecular pesticide has nucleic acid, such as DNA or RNA, as its active ingredient. The technology also
has potential to be used against other insect pests.

The technology was developed by ARS entomologists Julia W. Pridgeon and James J. Becnel, in the ARS Mosquito and Fly
Research Unit, Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville, Fla. Their technology prevents
mosquitoes from producing essential proteins necessary for their survival. Although other approaches to nonchemical pest
control are being pursued, this ARS invention has certain advantages.

The molecular pesticide concept allows scientists to design each pesticide specifically for the targeted individual pest
species. It interrupts genes essential for insect survival, causing the insect to die. This recently discovered
technology maximizes safety and minimizes environmental impact on beneficial insects.

In addition, molecular pesticides should be effective against pest species that are resistant to conventional chemical
pesticides. Chemical pesticides often have an impact on the physiological systems shared by humans, but this new method
only targets specific genes of the pest species. Molecular pesticides can also be easily administered--by contacting the
insect externally.

This technology would also reduce the time and costs associated with obtaining regulatory approval of new products and
would also serve as a model system for developing novel insecticides. Successful development and transfer of molecular
pesticides could represent a quantum leap in developing new toxicants for pest control.

A patent application for this technology has been submitted and ARS is seeking a cooperative research and development
partner to develop appropriate formulations that can be marketed and sold commercially. This research was partially
funded by the Deployed War-Fighter Protection Research Program funded from the U.S. Department of Defense.

ARS is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific research agency.

___________________________________________

This is one of the news reports that ARS Information distributes to subscribers on weekdays. Send feedback and questions
to the ARS News Service at NewsService@ars.usda.gov.

* You are subscribed to "ARS News" as lflj@bellsouth.net.
* To change the address, please notify the ARS News Service at NewsService@ars.usda.gov.
* To unsubscribe, send a blank email to leave-139273-39272K@ls.ars.usda.gov.
* Other ARS news products are available by e-mail. For details about them or to subscribe, please contact the ARS News
Service or visit http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/lists.htm.
__________________________________________
ARS News Service, Information Staff, Agricultural Research Service
5601 Sunnyside Ave., Room 1-2251, Beltsville MD 20705-5128
NewsService@ars.usda.gov | www.ars.usda.gov/news
Phone (301) 504-1636 | fax (301) 504-1486


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