title: Genetic elimination of field-cage populations of Mediterranean fruit flies.
abstract: The Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly, Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann) is a pest of over 300 fruits, vegetables and nuts. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a control measure used to reduce the reproductive potential of populations through the mass release of sterilized male insects that mate with wild females. However, SIT flies can display poor field performance, due to the effects of mass-rearing and of the irradiation process used for sterilization. The development of female-lethal RIDL (release of insects carrying a dominant lethal) strains for medfly can overcome many of the problems of SIT associated with irradiation. Here, we present life-history characterizations for two medfly RIDL strains, OX3864A and OX3647Q. Our results show (i) full functionality of RIDL, (ii) equivalency of RIDL and wild-type strains for life-history characteristics, and (iii) a high level of sexual competitiveness against both wild-type and wild-derived males. We also present the first proof-of-principle experiment on the use of RIDL to eliminate medfly populations. Weekly releases of OX3864A males into stable populations of wild-type medfly caused a successive decline in numbers, leading to eradication. The results show that genetic control can provide an effective alternative to SIT for the control of pest insects.
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK.
authors.forename: Philip T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Leftwich
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK.
authors.forename: Martha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koukidou
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK Faculty of Biotechnology and Applied Biology, Department of Biology, University of Crete, Heraklion, Crete, Greece.
authors.forename: Polychronis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rempoulakis
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK.
authors.forename: Hong-Fei
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Division of Genetics, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
authors.forename: Antigoni
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zacharopoulou
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK.
authors.forename: Guoliang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK.
authors.forename: Tracey
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chapman
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biotechnology and Applied Biology, Department of Biology, University of Crete, Heraklion, Crete, Greece.
authors.forename: Aris
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Economopoulos
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biotechnology and Applied Biology, Department of Biology, University of Crete, Heraklion, Crete, Greece.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vontas
authors.affiliation: Oxitec Limited, 71 Innovation Drive, Milton Park, Oxford OX14 4RQ, UK Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK The Pirbright Institute, Ash Road, Woking GU24 0NF, UK luke.alphey@pirbright.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Luke
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alphey
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D033622:Ceratitis capitata / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005799:Genes, Dominant / Q000235:genetics; D005804:Genes, Lethal / Q000235:genetics; D007300:Insect Control / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D010572:Pest Control, Biological / Q000379:methods*; D012098:Reproduction; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: medfly; release of insects carrying a dominant lethal; sterile insect technique