Biological control
OwnerLuke Alphey, Dean Thomasinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention relates to a non-human multicellular organism carrying a dominant lethal genetic system, the lethal effect of which is conditional, wherein the lethal effect of the lethal system occurs in the natural environment of the organism.
Claims37
A nonhuman multicellular organism carrying a dominant lethal genetic system, the lethal effect of which is conditional., wherein the lethal effect of the lethal system occurs in the natural environment of the organism.
An organism according to any preceding claim, wherein the conditional lethal effect of the lethal system is not dependent upon the temperature range which occurs in the natural environment of the organism.
An organism according to any preceding claim wherein the lethal effect of the dominant lethal system is conditionally suppressible.
An organism according to any preceding claim, wherein the lethal system is homozygous at more than one locus.
An organism according to any preceding claim, wherein the lethal system is located on the X chromosome.
An organism according to any preceding claim wherein the lethal system has multiple essential targets.
An organism according to any preceding claim, wherein the lethal genetic system comprises all or part of the Drosophilia Nipp1Dm gene, or functional equivalent thereof.
An organism according to any preceding claim wherein the organism is an insect.
An organism according to any preceding claim, wherein the lethal genetic system is sex-specific or specific to a sexual entity or tissue.
A method of biological control comprising:
- i) breeding a stock of organisms according to any preceding claim under permissive conditions;
- ii) distributing the organisms into the environment at a locus for biological control;
- and
- iii) achieving biological control through expression of the lethal system in offspring resulting from interbreeding of the individuals of the biological control agent with individuals of the opposite sex of the wild population.
A method for producing organisms for biological control, comprising the step of breeding a stock of or b according to any preceding claim under permissive conditions.
A polynucleotide sequence encoding a conditional dominant lethal genetic system according to any preceding claim.
A method of conducting a vector appropriate for imps a dominant lethal genetic system to an organism, comprising the steps of:
- i providing at least one conditional lethal genetic system;
- ii choosing a promoter appropriate for expression of the system in the desired organism;
- iii ligating tic promoter and conditional lethal genetic system, optionally with other components, to produce a functional vector suitable for transformation;
- wherein transformation of the vector into the organism produces an organism for biological control according to the invention.
A method for the field testing of transgenic crops, comprising the step of growing a transgenic plant comprising a conditional lethal dominant system under permissive conditions, and then distributing the plant into the environment where it is exposed to restrictive conditions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.