The bold plan to end malaria with a gene drive

How genetically engineered mosquitoes might defeat a disease that kills millions of children.
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The invention of the CRISPR gene editing tool has injected new life into a line of research called gene drive. Gene drives use selfish genetic elements to spread a modification through a wild population.
Researchers have proposed using gene drives against agricultural pests and invasive species, but the most urgent application is against vector-borne diseases like malaria, which kills hundreds of thousands of people every year, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.
We talked to the scientists working on this revolutionary approach to disease eradication to find out how it works and how long it might take to deploy a technology like a gene drive against malaria.
Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out www.vox.com.
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[@Vox]

To learn more, read Dylan's article here: bit.ly/2J78xwE. And check out our Netflix show! Explained: bit.ly/2sjJv6K - joss

[@Wookien]

Why don't they edit the parasite genes instead? Seems counter intuitive to kill another species.

[@n2201]

What happens to the bats and other species that feed on mosquitoes

[@Vox]

Some important facts to keep in mind when discussing gene drives: 1) There are more than 3,000 mosquito species, including over 800 in Africa alone. These researchers are only targeting a few that transmit human diseases. So far there isn't evidence that malaria-carrying mosquitoes are key species for ecosystems (nothing that feeds on them exclusively). Though of course, there can be ripple effects that we can't foresee. 2) Gene drives only work on sexually-reproducing organisms, so you couldn't use this to spread viruses or bacteria. 3) Gene drives work in animals with short generation times (mosquitoes have a new generation every couple of weeks.) So inserting a gene drive into a human or other large mammals would take reeeeeeeallly long to have population-wide effects. -joss

[@ReubenJBrown]

Vox, always love your videos, joss. loving explained on netflix too! ❤️

[@KIKE.KAWASAKI]

It would be as effective with other diseases as zika, dengue and chikungunya of different species of mosquitoes in continents like South America.

[@Chadx2]

This is great news because as a person born in the Democratic republic of Congo, I'm one of the malaria survivors so the sooner CRISPR is brought around (& REGULATED) to remove malaria, the happier and more prosperous the future of Africa will start to become.

[@ShankarSivarajan]

I'm glad your pathological desire for REGULATION is satisfied.

[@Chadx2]

Shankar Sivarajan I mean.. if CRISPR is misused we could have Godzilla sized mosquitoes flying around right? Lol

[@ShankarSivarajan]

+Crab Synth That gives me an idea: What if we created a gene-drive to make flightless mosquitoes?

[@KamiltheCamel]

Monkeeh First, I am pretty sure they have found that mosquitos are only part of a food source and most animals can eat other stuff. Second, yes some sacrifices must be made, but these are MILLIONS of people dying yearly. Sorry, but if AMerica or Europe were dealing with Malaria you know you would be ok with hurting the environment in order to keep yourself safe. We have already damaged the environment a lot. This could damage it, but it will only be one small thing on a very large list filled with much, much bigger things.

[@CodeRiseFN]

Filius Dei congrats for having a life. I am happy.

[@CuriosityCulture]

Vox videos always has a way to explain something in such a beautiful way.

[@TommoCarroll]

Too right Harshil! Have loved Vox's science-related content for years now! What did you think of their 'Thaw' series?

[@CuriosityCulture]

Aspect Science dude I love them. I'm big into storytelling. If you can tell a good story, you don't have to have a 'fancy' camera. Good story and some editing skill can make your video pop

[@TommoCarroll]

100% agree! The more videos we make the more we realise just that - it's almost the more simple visually you make it and the more focused on the story the better! A story to pull someone from point to point seamlessly, like Vox manages to do, is key!

[@mmhoss]

Yeah except that dumb bit of propaganda about polygamy

[@A_Nobbit]

*cough* Kurzgesagt *cough*

[@TommoCarroll]

*The real question is who do you call when mosquitoes attack...* The SWAT team!

[@CalpolMeister]

The door

[@watermoof4914]

CalpolMeister is right over there

[@CalpolMeister]

Nah, I can't even lie, I like a good pun

[@isaiahcabino6431]

s t o p

[@TommoCarroll]

Tehehe, CalpolMeister speaks the truth: no one can lie, you all love a good pun!

[@justlisten82]

There was a mosquito buzzing around me while I watched this video... I feel like I may have accidentally given them a heads up. I'm sorry. Ps. Update, I killed it we should be ok.

[@diulikadikaday]

I'm honestly getting a little teary-eyed watching this. It would be amazing to see millions of people saved. I have a 3 year old kid and I just started thinking how lucky he is to not have to suffer from Malaria.

[@return6005]

I like the malaria resistance choice better than killing the mosquito population as that will affect the ecosystem significantly.

[@r.b.4611]

yes

[@AdamSmith-gs2dv]

Same, lots of animals such as bats rely on mosquito's for food. Plants also rely on mosquito's to pollinate. By killing them you effect those.

[@seb_5969]

It will allow people to settle in the jungle of Africa... that means that the super Fauna there, such as Rhinos and Elefant are basically exstinct.

[@nicholasvsjesse]

iBlueDust Same here, malaria provides no benefit to Mosquitos, and so has no unintended environmental consequences as a result.

[@baggern]

nicholasvsjesse yeah and no. Malaria controls overpopulation

[@felipebier7]

It makes my skin crawl when I hear this argument about "nature" coming from people in developed countries, while people starve or perish from these illness everyday in other parts of the world. I strongly agree with the researcher's last words, "nature", this huge abstraction from which we are not detached, is not moral. Our politics as humans will dictate the use of these technologies, as it is the case for anything. Do those people even think how hunger and sickness halts democracy, for example? How it is hard to fight a corrupt government if you have to worry about having clean water?

[@jamestang1227]

7:46 Such as? Genetic modification, which isn't necessarily infertility, is still the closest solution we have so far.

[@atkillz6589]

James Tang ikr. Says there are safer ways, doesn’t even state them wtf you can tell she has no idea what’s she talking about

[@rodrigoborges3876]

The problem with GMOs is that, as any other technology, it can be used for good or for bad. People openly relate GMOs with the bad usage (making plants resistant to agrotoxics which makes the agrobusiness crank up on poison usage, making plants with seeds that are infertile so producers would have to buy seeds from the manufacturer, such as monsanto etc) and that clouds their eyes on the possibility that good, well regulated and well intended usage of the technology could have (making crops that are more nutritious, making crops that could grow on harsh climates, making crops naturally resistant to pests without requiring agrotoxic usage, making crops that restore the soil where they were planted or capture extra carbon from the atmosphere, etc) It's the same thing with nuclear energy. Nuclear power is by far the safest (even when you count deaths due to nuclear plant accidents, it's still less than every other form of energy combined. ourworldindata.org/what-is-the-safest-form-of-energy ), most cost-effective (cost both in terms of money and environmental impact, solar and wind are great, but very expensive, maintenance-heavy and less reliable) out there, but due to sensationalism about power plant accidents and fear of nuclear weaponry, the public is strongly opposed to it.

[@miwoisthata5186]

The video mentioned scientists looking for a vaccine, that would probably be the option that isn't as invasive to the whole ecosystem of Africa as erasing a complete species of mosquitoes

[@MvrMarieLaurence]

Like you're saying they are 'looking' for a vaccin, it will take at least another 10 years, another 10 years that little children die from this horrible dissease.

[@miwoisthata5186]

Can't really say if it will take 5 or 10 years for a vaccine, and the scientists themselves said it will take 2-5 years for phase 2, and we don't know how long that will take. I think the time until we have a vaccine and the time until we have genetically modified mosquitoes will be the same. However, this is Sub-Saharan Africa we're speaking of, so even if there is a vaccine available, many people won't be able to afford it, won't trust this new medicine (we see that right now with Ebola), there will be huge political obstacles and the infrastructure is extremely bad in parts of those countries. So yes, I believe altering the mosquitoes is the more efficient way, but the arguments of critics hold a lot of value. Imagine we eradicate that species of mosquitoes, now there is a pretty big link missing in the food chain and we don't quite know the effects of that yet. In general, altering the gene code of an animal could easily be done wrong, and we don't notice until they're set free on the continent. The genetic approach in my opinion is much more risky when looking at the ecosystem (which is already fragile in Africa), but when done right, will have a way better impact than vaccines or other medicine

[@annieh8127]

An eye opening video about the eradication of a disease that kills millions and the first four comments say "first"

[@rea8585]

OMG, how cool is this video and how amazing is science! Really hope something can be done to get rid of malaria in the shortest time possible!

[@wangdangdoodle4944]

Quick Fix agreed

[@derekdeadlifts2986]

Agreed I'm in college for biotechnology, I love this stuff! Personally I will probably be working for a supplement company after I graduate, however I hope to do some research with muscular dystrophy at some point in my life. I know if we could find a cure for that it would feel amazing and we may be closer than you think. i have vaguely touched on it in one of my videos.

[@derekdeadlifts2986]

@Darius Beaumont I am 23 years old but I have never left the United States lol.

[@lewdongan2698]

Son: I hope there will be flying cars in the future! Dad: No! we made mosquitoes to fight malaria!

[@wangdangdoodle4944]

Lew Dong An as seen on TV in black and white 🚽, we'd have more spare time and I need new radials ToO

[@sheikhheisen]

To be fair, I would rather have millions of deaths prevented instead of a cool vehicle.

[@staind2523]

Also to be fair, I don't think anyone actually wants everyone to have a flying car. Maybe just you, but not everyone. Imagine all of our traffic in the sky above you...what a terrifying thought.

[@derekdeadlifts2986]

There will be both hopefully.

[@Dalerz24]

BRILLIANT! Excellent job distilling advanced science and its importance into an easy to understand and entertaining video! Must have taken an incredible amount of thought and work.

[@thoyo]

I'm all for this, but we have to be keenly cognizant of unintended consequences. Recently, the rise of super resistant bugs due to overuse of antibiotics and antibacterials comes to mind.

[@charlieshin9868]

this has nothing to do with this. Its genetically modifying them directly not indirectly. Obviously if we used pesticide that much it was only a matter of time before they adapt same applies with humans, But Genetically modifying it is really a whole new thing

[@Amok83]

I understand your point, and agree in the way of thinking. But that line of thought arises from the knowledge of the consequences of misuse of pesticide and antibiotics. I think that the point here is that we still don't know what is misusing CRISPR technology. But I have faith in proper research.

[@thoyo]

Charlie Shin Understood. My reference wasn't meant to confuse genetic modification with the use of antibiotics. I meant to highlight the possibility of unintended consequences in the ecosystem etc. Such as the knock on effect on wildlife such as mosquito hawks which feed on mosquitos and the fish that eat them, and the fish that eat those fish, and so on. I'm no Luddite. I'm quite excited about this new technological development, I just hope that they're mindful of possible consequences.

[@aronseptianto8142]

and that's why my friend testing is a thing

[@saltpot]

thoyo Do mosquito Hawks exclusively eat mosquitos, and do they primarily eat the Gambiae species? In my reading on this topic, it was my understanding that there were very few species that rely on these mosquito species as a large part of their diet.

[@codyharper3824]

"I look at the earth as something we've gotta.. we gotta keep going for us and for other animals. But I don't look at it as this morally benevolent place... It's... It's a horror show that we're trying to manage as best we can." #TRUTH

[@kristychung6902]

Thank you so much Dylan and Joss! I'm researching ways biotechnology can help save endangered animals and although many children have dies, wildlife would be impacted greatly, too. I'm definitely going to find ways to help and can't wait to present this in my work for class. Thank you, guys!

[@TheYinfaowei]

This is one of my best vox episodes ever!!! you guys rock

[@Xeloss96]

I could listen to Joss's voice for ever!

[@asclepiusgod3791]

"Earth is a protected wildlife refuge. See, we're using it to replenish the mosquito population, which I remind you is an endangered species." - Pleakley

[@frenchfrythecool]

Joss, your videos are always excellent. I know I can always count on you to bring interesting stories to this platform with integrity and sound research

[@aliyahamiri7390]

I can’t help but get excited when watching this video. What an amazing breakthrough! ☺️

[@arando689]

I don't get how Ms. Dana Perls sees her argument that we can find a way to fix this that "aren't about permanently altering nature". Humans have been altering nature to our benifit for as long as we have existed. When we were just small farming communities, we would always choose to breed the crops that yielded better or was more resilient than those that were weak and didn't produce a lot of food for our effort. We put ourselves in the way of "nature" breeding the crops naturally. And today, our crops look drastically different than from, say, 1000+ years ago--for example: bananas, watermelons, mango, etc. And dogs and other domestic animals too. We bred the dogs that were more loyal, the sheep that had more wool, the horses that were faster and less aggressive. Dogs, specifically, have been selectively bred by us, over decades and maybe even centuries, for qualities other than loyalty. We have dogs that are cute, or large, or fluffy, and many other traits. If nothing happened that "permanently altered nature" as she put it, we probably wouldn't even exist.

[@finntran1672]

CRISPR-CAS9 is safer than any other approaches, despite it being so-called “Genetic Modifies (Modification)”. When you alter the genetics of a population, if will for surely alter the gene pool of the entire species (along with Gene Drive). However, this effect only stay WITHIN the species of the initial modification. Unlike pesticides, which can travel up to the food chain and potentially affect humans, genetic modification cannot spread to other species or even sub-species. The only concerns left are: 1. Will there be imbalance in the food chain if this species of mosquito is gone? No. Other less troublesome mosquito species will replace this species for sure. Nature can fill in these ecological niche very fast, and it’s even faster with insects. 2. What happen if these genetic naturally mutate and create “super-mosquito”? This is a good question. That’s why we must test these new bio-technology, but, as of right now, there’s no such thing. 3. What happen if Malaria can evolve to infect mosquitos that have already been made immune? Another good question, if something like that happen, then I’m sure Malaria can already by-pass human vacine. So, no worries here.

[@prabhatsourya3883]

As to question 2, the possibility of mutation and super bug creation is the reason why "oil - eating bacteria" (which would absorb and assimilate crude oil from the sea surface spills) was not commercialized, as scientists feared that it would mutate or mix with local bacteria and could cause catastrophic results on the ecosystem.

[@Claymann71]

Also: best video of the month. Shame it took this long to find. Take your Sub!

[@freewillftw]

I just love this channel, videos are well made and the presenter is beautiful.

[@marekvrbka]

This could be problematic. By essentially wiping out mosquitoes, you are affecting their predators... which affects their predators... This could be devastating. Albeit the resistance to malaria transmiting could work.

[@ConfusedPorpoise]

So far ecological work has been done and they have found that mosquitos have little role as prey. But they do have a role as a vector for diseases in the ecosystem. The issue is that these diseases kill us too. And yeah, it's also hard to know all the unintended consequences, but they are using the science they have right now to make this judgement.

[@starandfox601]

Mosquitos can cause migartions and effect migartion patterns.for example migrating birds will go to areas where the misquito population has exploded to get a quick fuel up of food. herbivores also will travel a cretain way to blow away mosquitoes and their biting also can cause herbivores to migrate to try and get away from them. So mosquitoes do play a huge role in the ecosystem. Also bioligist once thought wolves were useless and thanks to them yellow stones ecosystem collapsed.

[@cpwm17]

They only target mosquito species that transfer malaria.

[@vegetaprinceofdrip663]

this is only the species that carries malaria, plenty other species present

[@yayjuiws4224]

There's a lot of species of mosquitos, so one danger out of the list, won't do anything significantly harmful.

[@user-nj7rw5my9h]

I guarantee that if malaria were spreading in a developed country, the time needed for eliminating the disease would take at most 6 months.

[@alquinn8576]

Fact: 1,000 Africans = 1 American

[@connorfitz-d6852]

What an incredible video. Well balanced and informative

[@BlackLlight07]

Two women who involve in developing CRISPR gene editing have won Nobel Prize in Chemistry today.

[@ihsanayyasy6036]

Joss Fong!! :)

[@taquitolayton68]

She's cute, isn't she?

[@joemama32100]

UkeSama she's a total babe haha

[@abramjessiah]

Yes, I too have noticed. 😘

[@japhetawa2389]

yum yum

[@TommoCarroll]

🐛🐝🌿 Such an interesting point he makes at the end _"It's a horror show that we're trying to manage as best we can"_ - would love to hear what people think about that. Thoughts?

[@helkafen100]

It sounds like his worldview has been heavily influenced by his field of study. Ecosystems can also be wonderful and they provide us everything we need.

[@ilanyahav7484]

It is a complete hubris to think we can manage the planet's ecosystems. Science and technology (including genetic and geo-engineering) are amazing and have big roles to play in bringing back balance to disrupted and unhealthy bioregions all over the globe. Defeating malaria is an important goal for humanity, but we need to be humble and understand that there are always complex ecological implications for every intervention we make in natural systems. Just as a reminder - weather patterns are changing, oceans are acidifying, a rediculous number of creatures are going extinct.. There are other ways to combat Malaria - it was a serious epidemic in Mandatory- Plalestine / pre-Israel, and was completely eradicated: www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-how-malaria-shaped-the-future-map-of-israel-1.5866664

[@TommoCarroll]

helkafen100, that is definitely true - it does sound like that, so there might be a bit of bias going on. But at the same time, the fact that his field of study _is_ this could mean that what he says holds more weight?

[@TommoCarroll]

Love the responses on this by the way guys, can see this becoming a good conversation!

[@TommoCarroll]

ilan yahav, will definitely check out that article. What you say about us managing the ecosystems is very true - we do not and probably will not ever have the power to be able to control or manage the complex ecosystems of the natural world. But isn't what he's saying about 'managing as best we can' really in response to the people that claim nature is a beautiful and sublime place that doesn't need any intervention? That's how I saw what he was saying; nature _isn't_ fluffy and sometimes in can be down right terrifying (eg rapidly evolving pathogens) so we're essentially just trying to keep the worst of it at bay the best we can

[@ozzymendoza3216]

Joss Fong is hands down my favorite journalist in vox keep it up!

[@aditya.tanniru]

Awesome Video Vox Team.

[@SciencewithKatie]

This is so cool! 💛💛

[@3p1cand3rs0n]

Jeeze, nobody likes us today. At least we tried. 😕

[@fatbadboy329]

Oh, hi Katie

[@charlieshin9868]

Check out kurzegasagt for better info on this subject

[@samuelluisdelespiritusanto7343]

That video is old

[@unvergebeneid]

I don't think I'd agree that it's better. Also, it's spelled "kurzgesagt."

[@meowmeow5591]

Penny Lane ....chill mate, we know you went and searched for it to get the right spelling, and if the point was grammar he could've just searched as well, but we all inferred the right meaning ergo no need for the smart ass grammar checks.

[@unvergebeneid]

I didn't have to but the broader point would be that if you recommend something to other people, you should maybe go through the trouble of googling the correct spelling yourself.

[@TheRockerX]

Exactly

[@anand34s]

Love the channel!

[@MB1z]

Great work by the scientists. I hope all goes well.

[@Reqex]

What kind of effect might wiping a kind of mosquitoes have on the food chain? While I agree that we should work on this ASAP to save lives, but killing off all the mosquitoes sounds very dangerous... I think I agree more with virus resistant mosquitoes instead.

[@fangirlfortheages5940]

Enoch Tong I agree I’m surprised that wasn’t more of the environmentalist’s argument and it wasn’t touched on here

[@insertchannelnamehere8685]

Generally they do this with only one species of mosquito at a time, and while they might go extinct, there's literally hundreds of other ( perhaps non disease transmitting) other species that can take over their niche in the food chain, so the overall environmental effect isn't that bad

[@zoreh4279]

Bye everyone I have to go to school now

[@griffdog8233]

Sharpie Man Cya mate

[@Udontkno7]

have fun kid

[@panicatdx]

Sharpie Man what are you doing at school at 2pm on a bank holiday?

[@noweeeee]

Sharpie Man goodluck

[@amiyarose9140]

Sharpie Man Do good! :)

[@PepTwo]

i really love their editing stlye

[@MrJhuang999]

I'd be happy to hear Joss read stories for dayz. Are there gene modification risks? Food chain?

[@Sivah_Akash]

We can't just look at the harm nature does to us. It's nothing compared to how Nature actually helps us, and the reason we're alive at all. Anyways the harm is just Nature's way to keep sustaining species for as long as possible, whether we like it or not. But as a Species, we are indeed trying to survive better, as an instinct!

[@fanaticalzealot1246]

I don’t think we should make the mosquitoes infertile, that would drastically effect wildlife populations, I think the best option is to make mosquitoes anti parasitic.

[@mogur00]

the verb is AFFECT (unless you're saying "effect change" for eg.), and is basically synonymous with INFLUENCE (the verb). Eg. "making mosquitoes infertile would drastically affect wildlife populations" The noun is generally EFFECT, eg. "the effect of making mosquitoes infertile would be ..." FYI

[@wangdangdoodle4944]

mogur00 words be nimble words be quick words resemble walking Sti Ks. I touched her thigh and death smiled. I'll never wake up in a good mood again. Was it the??

[@jascrandom9855]

Absolute horseshit. Mosquitoes are hardly a source of food for any creature in nature. They won't be missed by anyone.

[@raquelflorence235]

Jasc Random Some really small birds eat mosquitos. Mosquito larvae is food for many small fish.

[@meowmeow5591]

"Drastcially effect wildlife populations" what ones? Where? What animals? You have no idea, but thought to comment because you assume you know better than the scientists working on this. Even just a quick Google search shows you the impact (or lack of) this mosquito has to other animals and plants, and that it's human disease and overpopulation that caused the overpopulation of said mosquitos, they're nearly correcting for this

[@jackdavis4240]

I use Vox to do news summaries so thanks for existing

[@aidanrozema8522]

YOU RELEASED THIS 2 DAYS AFTER MY SCIENCE PROJECT ON MALARIA! GAH! AND I COULD OF USED YOU GUYS AS A SOURCE!!!!

[@PirateTHESteam1]

Can we also do this to ticks while we're at it?

[@DavidAllen-px7gr]

Probably. It'll take just as much time as tweaking mosquitoes will take in total, but it's still feasible.

[@ilikemeandvidios]

I think giving the mosquitoes the ability to not give the virus to people is the best idea lowering the population will hurt the environment and we will feel the effects later on in these countries which have people depend on the environment for their livelihood

[@Silverizael]

There are hundreds of species of mosquito in the regions. This is only dealing with a single species that transmits malaria.

[@CAROLOC]

Hi, I have a degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics and during my studies I often read about this topic. I personally agree with a responsible use of genetic drive, but in the scientific community (for what I know at least) there is a big debate regarding their use. The major concern is that no such thing with a spreading capability of a genetic drive exist in nature so we don’t have any clue of how it will evolve even in the short term, for example it could inactivate itself by random mutation, or it could spread to other species where it could have a completely different effect (we know that the horizontal gene transfer could be more common than expected, we saw it happening in the wild fruit fly in the matter of years). I totally agree with its use, we are talking about saving lives. But I am afraid that it will take a lot of time before its use. However I am not specialising in this field so my point of view could be a little dated.

[@milanfilipovic3648]

Found this video after learning about the Oxitec experiment in the Florida Keys. Really interesting!

[@BR-jt6ny]

Just saying that nature is a horror show is pretty dismissive. Every time I hear about these genetically modified mosquitoes I can't help wondering whether drastically reducing mosquito populations won't have bad consequences for the local ecosystems.

[@DankMatter]

I mean if these mosquitos got released into the world, people will still shoo them away

[@charlieshin9868]

yh but the point of this is to make it so that these mosquitoes repopulate so basically in a few years time there will be zero mosquitoes that can pass malaria

[@meowmeow5591]

With such an ignorant comment, I'm gonna bet (and really hope) you're trolling.

[@DankMatter]

meow meow non't

[@AL-hk3oo]

Hello catn't

[@BlobsoR0ck]

True

[@sushio4357]

Joss Fong explains so well

[@GlynisDance]

Excellent video.

[@florence9133]

Aloha, fellow Vox fans!

[@rewer]

Flo Butcher, aloha

[@florence9133]

rewer Bonjour from England :)

[@TommoCarroll]

Bonjourno from England!

[@TommoCarroll]

Oh haha, just saw that you wrote pretty much the EXACT same thing! Bonjour is apparently an English thing now aha!

[@florence9133]

Aspect Science that's gotta be it! 😁

[@tylerbritton38]

One accedentiy escapes lab

[@ShankarSivarajan]

Tyler Britton "accidentally" saving millions of lives, despite not being approved by the government.

[@HowardxDuck]

Why did you guys at 4:22 make them do a Skype call interview when it’s obvious that they’re in the same studio with the same lighting and audio quality? It literally looks like they’re right next to each other based on the background

[@SarveshShah]

Exactly my thoughts!

[@Vox]

Dylan is based in new york. I'm in DC. -joss

[@HowardxDuck]

Vox ahh ok. You have to admit though that it looks like that though right? Great video

[@SarveshShah]

Ohh makes sense

[@thevinedenedo8199]

I am from Nigeria, I surfer malaria infection at least twice each year, it's horrible. Science has once again proven to be a positive force for good if left in the hand of rational thinkers.

[@moskva-kassiopeya]

U do no da wae

[@DemoEvolvedGaming]

really well done. important

[@hijack69]

I love your new show on Netflix. Keep up the good work😄

[@aniekanumoren6088]

Vox science vids >>>>>> vox Political vids

[@aniekanumoren6088]

Sadly the climate change denial on the right is attrorious, but the denial of biological differences between men and women on the left is also madenning.

[@CutieZalbu]

Aniekan Umoren LoL man & women are different biologically but the right uses that same differences to oppress women😂

[@silvervixen007]

Because you disagree?

[@nokiabladee]

true xd

[@Sam-ip6co]

So its okay to intentionally push a entire species to extinction now

[@nesslig2025]

We have done that before in terms of things that are sources of major human (and sometimes animal) suffering and I hope morons like you won't stop us from doing that. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eradication_of_infectious_diseases

[@another.nikhil]

Vox has the best videos on youtube.

[@bvthebalkananarchistmapper5642]

I didn't even start watching the video, and I already know what's it about. THANKS KURZGESAGT, FOR MAKING A VIDEO ABOUT THE SAME THING MORE THAN A YEAR AGO!

[@bvthebalkananarchistmapper5642]

I prefer the Californian method, thank you very much.

[@bvthebalkananarchistmapper5642]

F*** you anti-Genetic-modification groups!

[@shahnawazansari119]

u r late.. kurzgegast did it first

[@one8ty.918]

Shahnawaz Ansari *kurzgesagt

[@ByNextus]

That video is hella old. This one is an "updated version" of that!

[@jeyanthiprabhu1338]

ONE8TY. Yea kurzgesagt is so hard to spell

[@Katzelle3]

Kurzgegast war die Lebenserwartung einer Gruppe von Personen in den vierziger Jahren.

[@cheddarcheese3296]

Time for an update to this video.

[@paradox...]

Joss is back!

[@endo9902]

This is the kind of "news" that makes me glad to live now and in this planet.

[@ejoshcoron]

Fascinating. Brilliant

[@Eddiexornela]

Aye Zot Zot! I go to Uci, they’ve already released a few to the wild around here

[@TyKOmain]

Nice I remember when Vice covered this like a year ago when the Zika outbreak was big....

[@RHabib548]

Awesome video

[@Udontkno7]

These make me happy :)

[@piccolo917]

This is why you should fund biomedical scientists with as much money as they ask for.

[@nara0dhipa]

joss' voice is heaven

[@NessieAndrew]

Old story. Yet, I still like how it's presented.

[@Hicham-zl4iu]

It's because of the pharmaceutical business. I recommand strongly watching Malaria Business Documentary to see, that these millions are dying because of the greedy Pharma industry. And read about ARTEMISIA ANNUA plant, which is very effective for Malaria but unfortunately not allowed in many countries because of the lobby's and the WHO.

[@joy_bhowmick]

Nice job on Netflix's Explained VOX

[@thevioletskull8158]

good luck scientists! i hope you can make this.

[@nadimahmed3813]

Your videos weren't coming up on my subscription feed?

[@AdamvanNoort]

Wow Vox on Netflix is just perfect!

[@stuartmaughan]

Top stuff!

[@cucaulwell1287]

As a general rule I'm wary of Genetic Modification... but so long as they test it super rigorously and then get a really pessimistic person to think of all the negative outcomes and ensure those don't happen... sure, I guess. It sounds good in theory, anyway.

[@bipinsamsohang]

beautiful!

[@PincheBrayan101]

I’m all for getting rid of mosquitoes but you have to be careful with eliminating mosquitoes just because some animals rely on mosquitoes for food. Altering mosquitoes I’m all for.

[@jordanwr1]

This is outstanding content. I'd only recommend spending more time on the name you choose for each episode. Mentioning the "ethical dilemma" would score better hits. BTW, just as a geek tradition of random marriage proposals: "marry me Joss!". Kudos on this channel, curated content is the future of education via social networks.

[@leifharmsen]

If all mosquitoes went extinct I don't think anyone would cry.

[@SakuraStallion]

What about the animals that eat those mosquitos? Will the shrinking of their population affect the ecosystem? If it makes a drastic change will it be worth the fewer cases of malaria?

[@shantodas8184]

Joss after a long time :D

[@shrekt1000]

Valentino, there's an Anopheles mosquito behind you! Oh no he has airpods in, he can't hear us.

[@DemonFox369]

Oh they're actually doing it now? Was talking about it last school semester and about how this is being researched since it can prevent malaria but also may have unwanted results

[@OmikronPsy]

6:12 "There are no regulations that have handled this before" The reason is: There are many regulations how to deal with genetically modified organism in most countries. For example in Germany: It is strictly VERBOTEN to release them into the environment.

[@yechielblack9245]

can you guys make a vid on over population and if you already did can you link it thank you

[@sbellaharris]

No Joss comment? Wow. Audience improved.

[@mogur00]

look harder

[@cutelovegigi]

It is not that we don't want to help people, the issue is that the Gene Drive is such a new method that we are still learning about. Just a year ago scientists started testing a gene drive with mice and they have already seen that after 5 generation the gene drive had been turned off, in other words, in mammals it had already presented mutations. I am not against using gene drives but also I don't think we should jump right in to trying this technology yet, especially with children. As a biology major and someone who is interest in genetics, I just ask from current scientists to do more trials and make sure how to use this technology before using it.

[@juliosalgado956]

I have a concern about the food chain: if the process of analysis is rushed and a lack of these mosquitoes are shown after a while, would not have a consequence in the jungles all over the world? Meaning the extinction of more then a few important especies to global preservation? Would that be the line we are about to pass, the boundry between human lifes and enviromment due a rush on research?

[@HumbleMemeFarmer]

Nice! This is what humans should be about, using science to help the people AND the earth. I support this 100 percent.

[@samuelluisdelespiritusanto7343]

This is old But still thanks for the video

[@JarrodBaniqued]

I like Friends of the Earth and am okay with GMO labeling, but genetic engineering is one of the best ways forward to letting humanity survive and overcome disease and slow aging.

[@pringlelays159]

Very nice phenotype and genotype