Should a Company Be Able to Release Genetically-Altered Mosquitoes into the Environment?
Oxitec, a British biotech company founded by Dr. Luke Alphey, develops innovative approaches for insect-borne diseases and agricultural pests plaguing developing countries.
Oxitec developed a new approach to tackling the mosquito-borne disease dengue fever. There are 50 million to 100 million cases of dengue fever every year, with a death rate of about 2.5 percent. There is no treatment or vaccine for dengue fever; patients are treated for their symptoms and the disease must run its course. Many pests are becoming resistant to insecticides, and concerns are growing over the long-term environmental and health impact of consistent use of insecticides. Using advanced genetics, Oxitec breeds and releases “sterile” male mosquitos of the disease-carrying species. The company claims that this new approach is a highly targeted form of biological control that is safe to other species, causes no lasting impact on the environment, and is cost-effective. In 2010, Oxitec released 3 million genetically altered mosquitos into the Cayman Islands, resulting in a reported 80 percent reduction in the incidence of dengue fever.
In 2009 the Florida Keys suffered an outbreak of dengue fever. Although no one died from the outbreak, 93 people became ill in Key West. To avoid future outbreaks, the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District decided to contract with Oxitec to release its genetically altered mosquitos in the Florida Keys. Key West would be only the fourth location worldwide to use this approach to control the local mosquito population.
Some critics raised concerns about releasing genetically altered mosquitos into the environment. Others questioned the ecological impact of removing insects from an ecosystem. These critics argued that no one knows the impact on animals that feed on these mosquitos and cannot know what other organisms may move in to fill the ecological void once the mosquitos are gone. The Florida Keys Environmental Coalition wrote to Florida Governor Rick Scott, asking him to stop Oxitec, pointing out that “. . . biting female mosquitoes could inject an engineered protein into humans along with other proteins from the mosquitos’ salivary gland. Oxitec has yet to conduct or publish any study showing that this protein is not expressed in the salivary gland and therefore cannot be passed on to humans.”
A local real estate agent collected more than 117,000 signatures on a petition she posted on Change.org against the release of the genetically-altered mosquitos in the Florida Keys.
Advocates of the plan pointed to the research conducted by Oxitec that has been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals, which highlights the problems associated with traditional spraying with insecticides. The use of the altered mosquitos cannot move ahead until the FDA gives its formal approval.
Local residents also are concerned about the ecological impact of Oxitec’s approach to insect control. They argue that officials should take a wait-and-see approach by observing the ecological impact of the treatment used in the Cayman Islands.
- Is it ethical for a company to expose people to products that have not been definitively proven to be safe? Explain.
- Create a detailed diagram of all of the stakeholders affected by Oxitec’s actions. What conclusions can you draw from this analysis?
- Describe the business model of Oxitec, using the Business Model Canvas. What recommendations might you make for the company’s business model going forward?