Scientists at Imperial College London have been studying a gene in mosquitoes DNA that affects their ability to reproduce, called the doublesex gene. The doublesex gene determines whether a mosquito is a male or female, and in the study females with two copies of the mutated gene were unable to develop and reproduce properly and some could not develop the proboscis that allows mosquitoes to bite and suck human blood. This genetic mutation could completely eradicate mosquitoes in the future and help prevent the spread of diseases like malaria and yellow fever. However, questions have been raised about how this could affect the environment and other species of insects and animals. Researchers say that there are nearly 3,000 species of mosquitoes on Earth, but only a small amount of them actually feed on humans. The doublesex gene develops differently in every species of mosquito, so it would be possible to target specific species that harm humans rather than the entire mosquito population. Scientists are taking a closer look into how mosquitoes affect the food chain and the impact that it would have on the environment if some were to go extinct in the future.
How do you think the extinction of mosquitoes would affect the environment?
I think that it will definitely impact the environment because it would mess up the food chain. Certain animals like the mosquitofish and other insects rely heavily on mosquitoes for food and if mosquitoes were to go extinct or even decrease in population I think it would affect what those animals/insects ate, and whether or not other species survived.
Do you think it's a good idea to try and eliminate some or even all mosquito species? Why or why not?
I think that it is a good idea and something that should definitely be researched and explored more because the diseases that mosquitoes carry like the Zika virus and malaria are very dangerous, but I do think it might be a risky thing to do. Many insects and animals rely on mosquitoes for food and if mosquiotes were to decrease in population it would affect other species because they wouldn't have as many food sources. I think that they should continue reasearching how it would affect the food chain before putting the gene mutation into full effect, but I do think in the long run it would really help eliminate the serious diseases they can carry.
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Replies
Super job overall! The only issue is that all your comments were done on 10-4. I ask that students make comments on three different days.
I think it mostlikey will effect the envoriment and it will might kill some animals or at least starve them.
I think it is because it can prevent the spreed of many diseases and it will make a buch of people happy beuase lot's of people hate them.
It may mess up food chains, but I would be very happy as would my arms and legs. I think it is definitely a good idea to research and experiment to see what would happen.
I think that making mosquitoes go extinct would be good because it would stop a lot of diseases from being spread, but also there are a a LOT of species like bees who feed on mosquitoes a lot and the food chain would be heavily affected by this.
it would change allot of things because once they die all the animals that ate them will die and it will start a chain where if the animals food died then he cant servive
i think that trying to kill mosqutos would be a good idea and if they are worryd about keeping them it will do bad juat keep a couple thousand then if the enviroment does bad bring them back
I don't think all the animals that eat mosquitoes would die, I do agree that it would probably have an impact on certain animals but a lot of them have many other food sources and it wouldn't eliminate all mosqutioes, only a small number.
1.) I think it would definetly impact the environment. I feel it would mess up the food chain because certain insects and animals eat mosquitoes. 2.) I don't think that it's a good idea to try and eliminate some mosquitoes because we still don't have all of the facts. Once we get all of the facts and make sure it doesn't harm anything then we could start to eliminate them little by little.
I agree, I think that it could be great for humans as long as they do more research and take things slowly so they are sure it won't cause other animals to go extinct.
I agree that it would impact the envioment because if you get ride of an animals food sorce then that animal might die and that animal caould be a food sorce for another animal and so on. Yes and no because if you get rid of them then we dont have to worry about getting bit and atrackting a disease but then again it could be bad for the envioment.
It would most definitely imact the environment because the are a part of the food chain, and some species of animals/plants rely on the mosquitoes as a main food source. Even though they are a pest and annoying I dont think it is a good idea to try and eliminate or greatly decrease the mosquitoes because they are a part of the food chain. Then the food chain would be messed up cause the species that rely on them for food would decrease as well or be eliminated as well and then whatever eats them decreases as well or eliminated and the cycle continues.
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