Malaria Control and Gene Editing

What is the main reason that efforts to stop malaria have not been completely successful?

• There is no known way to prevent malaria.

• Mosquito nets and insecticides are not enough on their own.

• Malaria cannot be transmitted from one human to another.

• All efforts to stop malaria have been completely successful.

What is the primary vector of malaria, as mentioned in the text?

• Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes

• All female mosquitoes

• Male mosquitoes

• Mosquito larvae

What gene-editing tool was used in the study to genetically modify Anopheles mosquitoes?

• Gene Modifying Toolset (GMT)

• Genetic Sequence Replacer (GSR)

• CRISPR/Cas9

• DNA Sequence Editor (DSE)

What was the outcome when Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes were genetically modified using CRISPR/Cas9?

• The mosquitoes became immune to malaria.

• The mutation caused the mosquitoes to produce more eggs.

• The mutation prevented females from biting and laying eggs.

• The mosquitoes were able to fly longer distances.

What is the potential benefit of genetically modifying mosquitoes in the context of malaria control?

• Increasing the number of mosquitoes to boost the ecosystem.

• Lowering mosquito populations in the wild and getting rid of malaria in the future.

• Making mosquitoes more resistant to insecticides.

• Enabling mosquitoes to carry different diseases.

What determines the sex of each mosquito according to the document?

• The size of the mosquito

• The doublesex (dsx) gene

• The number of eggs it lays

• The presence of exons in its DNA

What was modified in mosquitoes to develop a gene drive for malaria elimination?

• exons 5 in mosquitoes

• The entire dsx gene

• The reproductive system of mosquitoes

• The blood-sucking structures of female mosquitoes

What was the outcome for female mosquitoes carrying one copy of the mutation?

• They had higher fertility

• They were unaffected

• They had lower fertility but passed the mutation to their offspring

• They became infertile and could not lay eggs

How long did it take for both populations to crash in the study?

• 6 weeks

• 6 months

• 9-13 generations

• 12 generations

What happens to the mosquito population size as the mutated gene spreads, according to Figure 3?

• It increases steadily

• It remains constant

• It fluctuates before stabilizing

• It decreases until it crashes