Imagine a company releasing millions of experimental, genetically engineered, biting insects into a populated island environment. Sounds like the plot to a new "Jurassic Park," doesn't it? Unfortunately, this plot is very real, and it will happen unless we stop it. Can you join me in calling on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to say our environment should not be a testing ground for experimental, genetically engineered (GE) mosquitoes? Click here to sign the petition, which says:

Oxitec—the creator of the GE mosquitoes—claims that their GE mosquitoes might help reduce the spread of diseases like Zika and dengue by reducing mosquito populations. Reducing the spread of mosquito-borne diseases is important, but independent scientists have critiqued the GE mosquito as a potentially ineffective and risky attempt to address dengue.¹

There are flaws in Oxitec's experimental logic; for example, there have been no dengue fever cases in the Florida Keys since 2009, and the Center for Disease Control notes that there is not data from any of Oxitec's other trials that show a reduction in diseases.² Even a great reduction in these mosquitoes still leaves enough mosquitoes in peoples' homes and backyards to spread disease.

Oxitec, owned by synthetic biology giant Intrexon, which also owns the GE apple and GE salmon, has proposed moving this experiment from the lab into the Florida Keys, without adequate understanding of the impacts. We need independent environmental and health safety assessments and strong regulations to protect people and the environment before these, and other, GE insects are released into living ecosystems.

We need to tell FDA that it should not approve this risky experiment. Click here to add your name.

Scientists have significant concerns about how GE mosquitoes could impact the health of people and of critical ecosystems. Once released into the environment, this new, living engineered organism cannot be "recalled"; GE mosquitoes could reproduce and cause unintended changes in the ecosystem.

Despite being a brand-new type of invention that poses new types of risk, these genetically engineered insects are not being controlled by new regulations; the U.S. government is using existing regulations meant for "new animal drugs," such as cow vaccines.³ The FDA needs to establish strong, updated regulations before any GE mosquitoes swarm our environment.

Unfortunately, this is just the beginning. If Oxitec is allowed to release its experimental GE mosquitoes without responsible oversight and understanding of impacts on human health and the environment, it will set a dangerous precedent for other GE insects in the pipeline, including moths and flies.

The environment, including our homes, should not be a testing ground for risky new GE technologies. Our government agencies must not rely on companies that would profit from genetically engineered organisms to decide what information the public and regulators should know. We must demand independent, transparent safety assessments, answers to our questions about impacts to the environment and health, and a regulatory system equipped to deal with the novel risks from these experimental mosquitoes before they are released from labs into our environment.

Click here to add your name to this petition, and then pass it along to your friends.

Thanks!

—Jaydee Hanson, Center for Food Safety

Sources:

1. "Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Have Few Proven Benefits, Too Many Risks," The New York Times, February 23, 2015

http://act.moveon.org/go/2840?t=6&akid=164073.2269734.vvrlUi

2. "Locally acquired Dengue--Key West, Florida, 2009-2010," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, May 21, 2010

http://act.moveon.org/go/2952?t=8&akid=164073.2269734.vvrlUi

3. "Regulation of Genetically Engineered Animals Containing Heritable Recombinant DNA Constructs," U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary, June 2015

http://act.moveon.org/go/2953?t=10&akid=164073.2269734.vvrlUi

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