Published:
Recombinant venom proteins in insect seminal fluid reduce female lifespan
Nature Communications volume 16, Article number: 219 (2025)
Abstract
The emergence of insecticide resistance has increased the need for alternative pest management tools. Numerous genetic biocontrol approaches, which involve the release of genetically modified organisms to control pest populations, are in various stages of development to provide highly targeted pest control. However, all current mating-based genetic biocontrol technologies function by releasing engineered males which skew sex-ratios or reduce offspring viability in subsequent generations which leaves mated females to continue to cause harm (e.g. transmit disease). Here, we demonstrate intragenerational genetic biocontrol, wherein mating with engineered males reduces female lifespan. The toxic male technique (TMT) involves the heterologous expression of insecticidal proteins within the male reproductive tract that are transferred to females via mating. In this study, we demonstrate TMT in Drosophila melanogaster males, which reduce the median lifespan of mated females by 37 − 64% compared to controls mated to wild type males. Agent-based models of Aedes aegyptipredict that TMT could reduce rates of blood feeding by a further 40 – 60% during release periods compared to leading biocontrol technologies like fsRIDL. TMT is a promising approach for combatting outbreaks of disease vectors and agricultural pests.
Introduction
Insect pests pose a major challenge to human and environmental health. Malaria, spread by several species of Anopheles mosquitoes, causes 608,000 deaths per year1 and rates of arboviral diseases spread primarily by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, including dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever, are reaching unprecedented levels due to increased global trade and warming climates2. Dengue virus alone causes 390 million human infections each year and is now considered the most common vector-borne viral infection worldwide3. Recent studies have calculated that the cumulative cost of biological invasions is increasing four-fold every decade4, with a conservative estimate of US$162.7 billion for damages caused in 20175. Invertebrate pests, primarily insects, are responsible for ~40% of these damages5,6, and estimates of annual losses for all major food crops ranges between 20 and 30% due to damages by pests and pathogens7. Arboviral diseases such as avian malaria also pose a significant ecological threat to many native species, and are believed to be a key driver of population decline in New Zealand and Hawaiian forest birds8,9.
Pesticides are the first line of defence against many invasive species, particularly mosquitoes10. However, over-reliance on insecticides has resulted in the widespread emergence of resistance11. Over-application of insecticides has also resulted in declining populations of non-target species, and are responsible for many other environmental and human-health concerns12. Modern integrated pest management is trending towards reducing reliance on chemical insecticides in favour of other environmentally friendly management techniques to reduce the emergence of resistances10,13.
Genetic biocontrol, defined as the release of organisms which have been genetically altered to reduce the spread and harm caused by a target species14, is one such alternative that’s been gaining broader public acceptance15. Early and well established genetic biocontrol technologies (GBT) such as the sterile insect technique (SIT) involve the release of mass numbers of males which have been radiologically sterilised16, thereby reducing the reproductive potential of the females. More modern GBT, such as the release of insects carrying a dominant lethal gene (RIDL)17 and gene drives18 function by propagating transgenes which reduce the fitness of future generations as the transgenes are inherited. Cage and field trials of these second-generation GBT have begun to demonstrate their improved efficacy19,20,21, requiring fewer released males compared to conventional approaches to achieve similar population control, albeit with a potential trade-off between enhanced efficacy and reduced control over the degree of transgene introgression14.
Currently, all GBT require a minimum of a generation to take effect on the target population and often much longer until the harm from a pest outbreak is mitigated19. While this generational lag period is less problematic for species where immature life stages are the primary cause of harm, it poses a significant challenge for many disease vectors and agricultural pests where adult females are the main concern. For example, wild female Ae. aegypti have a median adult lifespan of 2–3 weeks22,23, will typically mate within 24–48 h of emerging24, and on average will take 0.63–0.76 blood meals per day25. Females that mate with GBT males may not produce viable offspring, but they can continue to spread disease or damage crops. Although current GBT are highly effective at intergenerational population control, a more rapid response to outbreaks of disease vectors is critical to mitigate the spread of arboviruses and avert the risk of epidemics, particularly in regions with seasonal population dynamics26.
An alternative approach to GBT that has been speculated on is utilising seminal fluid proteins (SFP) as a target to affect the fitness or fertility of mated females27,28,29,30. SFPs are produced within the male accessory glands (MAG) and stored within the lumen until they are transferred to females along with sperm and other compounds. SFPs such as ovulin (Acp26Aa) and sex peptides are known to generate various post-mating responses and physiological changes in females, such as reduced mating receptivity and median lifespan31,32. It has been demonstrated in Drosophila melanogaster that several low molecular weight SFP can pass through the female reproductive tract and enter the circulatory system (haemolymph), and even to act on receptors in the central nervous system (CNS)33,34. Evidence is mounting that mosquito SFP also act on receptors found within the CNS, with 30% of radiolabelled Culex SFP localising to the female head and thorax35, and intra-thoracic but not intra-abdominal SFP injections resulting in mating refractoriness in Anopheline and Aedes females36,37,38,39.
Here we describe the toxic male technique (TMT), which is—to the best of our knowledge—the first example of an intragenerational GBT. By genetically engineering pest species to express toxic, low molecular weight compounds within the MAG, the survival of mated females can be reduced (Fig. 1). Using D. melanogaster as a proof of concept, we engineer males to express one of seven insect-specific venom proteins in a MAG-specific pattern. Of the >1600 characterised venom compounds, 60% of these are cysteine-knotted mini-proteins40, which range from 2.6 to 14.8 kDa and are highly stable, taxonomically selective and less susceptible to pore region mutations associated with insecticide resistances41. Like endogenous SFP, the recombinant venom peptides should remain safely sequestered within the lumen of the MAG and not enter the male’s haemolymph. If the recombinant venom peptides pass through the mated female’s reproductive tract to affect the target ion channel receptors in her CNS, the neurotoxic effects are likely to be fast-acting and dose-dependent.
Current mating-based methods of genetic biocontrol (A) function by affecting the viability or sex ratio of the offspring of subsequent generations. However, mated females persist in the target area and can continue to cause harm (e.g. spread disease). Intragenerational biocontrol (B), such as TMT, directly affects the fitness of mated females, thereby rapidly reducing the harm caused by the target population. Created in BioRender. Maselko, M. (2024) https://BioRender.com/r25q201.
The median lifespans of wild-type females mated to two of the TMT strains are reduced by 37–64% after initial exposure compared to control females mated to wild-type males. Single-pair mating assays find that TMT males are able to court wild-type females as effectively as wild-type males. MAG-specific expression of a 5.2 kDa venom peptide has no significant effect on the lifespan of adult TMT males, but expression of a 2.9 kDa venom peptide reduces lifespan by 59% compared to wildtype and transgenic controls. To determine the theoretical capability of TMT to suppress a pest population in comparison to female-specific RIDL (fsRIDL), the current state-of-the-art GBT, we develop an agent-based model to simulate an idealised Ae. aegypti release programme19. Sensitivity analysis of the model found that the improved performance of TMT compared to fsRIDL is consistent across a broad range of values of polyandry, density-dependent mortality, and release ratios, with TMT reducing blood feeding rates by a further 40–60% in most simulations. These results demonstrate the potential of TMT as the next generation of genetic biocontrol, which is especially suited to rapidly respond to outbreaks of disease vectors and agricultural pests.
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