Ethics: Autonomy Matrix Group V

THE DEADLIEST ANIMALS IN THE WORLD http://www.gatesnotes.com by Bill Gates (25 Apr, 2014) Crocodiles (FAO, http://www.fao.org) Inland Taipan (The most venomous snake)

Natural reservoir, carrier, and transmitter of viruses Before talking about viruses, I show you pictures of mosquitoes. Mosquitoes usually sucks fruid of plants, and female mosquitoes sucks animals' blood during their egg-laying time. This means that mosquitoes are potentially good natural reservoir, carrier, and transmitter of viruses.

Disability-adjusted life year Light yellow = <10 dark red = >3500 per 100,000 inhabitants

Common solutions in the affected countries Recent Alternative

Biologist Olivia Judson has advocated to eradicate the Anopheles mosquitoes (which spread malaria) and Aedes mosquitoes (which spread dengue fever, yellow fever, elephantiasis, and other diseases). These species represent only 30 out of some 3,500 mosquito species; eradicating these would save at least one million human lives per year, at a cost of reducing the genetic diversity of the family Culicidae by only 1%.

Should a gene drive be used to eradicate malaria?

Should a gene drive be used to eradicate malaria? Potential benefit to humans is huge, but effects on ecosystem are unpredictable and possibly permanent.

Autonomy Matrix

No gene drive This scenario means we have to put our trust in the current medical research on vaccines, and improved medication. It also means a continued use of pesticides to kill mosquitoes, which does enormous damage to biodiversity and life quality of people in these areas. Also, research on gene drives might be stalled.

Gene drive introducing resistance gene This solution could save thousands of lives per year, starting now. If we stop spraying harmful pesticides this could save many bird and insect species in affected ecosystems. A healthier population means a better economy, and could help to develop third world countries. A successful gene drive for malaria will boost research opportunities to use the technology for other purposes. On the down side, if the technology doesn’t function as well as expected this might give people a false sense of security. We can’t predict the (long term) effect this human interference has on the ecosystem. If there are negative effects this could create bad feelings in the third world countries in which the ‘Western’ technology was released. Additionally this could discredit researchers as a whole, and halt further research in the area.

Gene drive eradicating carrier mosquito (Anopheles spp.) This solution could save thousands of lives per year, starting now. If we stop spraying harmful pesticides this could save many bird and insect species in affected ecosystems. A healthier population means a better economy, and could help to develop third world countries. A successful gene drive for malaria will boost research opportunities to use the technology for other purposes. On the down side, if the technology doesn’t function as well as expected this might give people a false sense of security. We can’t predict the (long term) effect this human interference has on the ecosystem. If there are negative effects this could create bad feelings in the third world countries in which the ‘Western’ technology was released. Additionally this could discredit researchers as a whole, and halt further research in the area. Biologist Olivia Judson has advocated to eradicate the Anopheles mosquitoes (which spread malaria) and Aedes mosquitoes (which spread dengue fever, yellow fever, elephantiasis, and other diseases). These species represent only 30 out of some 3,500 mosquito species; eradicating these would save at least one million human lives per year, at a cost of reducing the genetic diversity of the family Culicidae by only 1%.

Wait with gene drive until safeguards are in place Many believe that human life is sacred and malaria claims hundreds of thousand lives per year. The solution to introduce parasite resistant mosquitoes seems like the safest way to eradicate malaria, however we need to make sure that the potential environmental consequences that might affect us and the whole ecosystem can be reversed. Therefore further research of gene drive to implemet all the safeguards is needed. There will various preassures from political and commertial entities to push for the erradication ASAP but they need to be handled.