9 cool genetic tools that could save biodiversity
Nishan Degnarain National Ocean Council of the Government of Mauritius
Ryan Phelan Co-Founder and Executive Director, Revive & Restore
Thomas Maloney Director of Conservation Science, Revive and Restore
This article is part of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting
We are facing a global biodiversity crisis. Tens of thousands of animal species are becoming extinct every year, scientists estimate. Almost half the world’s biodiversity has disappeared since the 1970s, according to the Living Planet Index.
These troubling trends show no sign of slowing down. Indeed, population and economic growth, widespread habitat destruction, invasive species, wildlife diseases and climate change increase the pressure.
To safeguard our planet’s biodiversity, we need innovative new approaches. Fortunately, the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s rapid advances in biotechnology hold promise. New genetic and biotechnology tools are already being used in medicine and agricultural systems, particularly in crops and domestic animals. Biotechnology is advancing at an even faster rate than that of Moore’s Law, which saw microchip processing power double every two years while costs fell by half.
As the Carlson curve above shows, the cost of sequencing a genome has fallen from $100 million in 2001 to below $1000 today. We are now able not just to read biological code faster, but also to write and design with it in new ways.
Here are nine new or emerging biotechnologies which could help safeguard nature.
1. Biobanking and cryo-preservation
Biobanks store biological samples for research and as a back-up resource to preserve genetic diversity. Examples include the San Diego Frozen Zoo, the Frozen Ark projects, and numerous seed banks. Samples provide tissues, cell lines and genetic information that can form the basis for restoring and recovering endangered wildlife. To enable this, ongoing collection of biological samples from species facing extinction must take place.
2. Ancient DNA
Ancient DNA (aDNA) is DNA that has been extracted from museum specimens or archaeological sites up to thousands of years old. DNA degrades rapidly, so most aDNA comes from samples younger than 50,000 years old, and from cold climates. The oldest specimen recorded with retrievable DNA is a horse unearthed from frozen ground in Yukon, Canada. It has been dated to between 560,000 to 780,000 years old.
For conservation purposes, aDNA can give insight into evolution and population genetics, and reveal deleterious mutations that have developed over time. It may also allow us to recover valuable “extinct alleles”, to return full genetic diversity to species that have been genetically depleted by small or fragmented populations. There is even the prospect of returning extinct species to life and to their old ecological roles in the wild.
(PS. Sorry, no dinosaurs. “You cannot clone from stone.”)
3. Genome sequencing
High-throughput genome sequencing creates a reference genome that can provide the foundation for understanding a species genetically, and can act as the building blocks for genetic engineering in the future. Several initiatives are focused on sequencing life on Earth, creating an unrivalled resource to capture the genetic diversity of life. Genome 10K, the Fish-T1K (transcriptomes of 1,000 fishes) and the Avian Genomes Project are notable examples.
Rapid sequencing tools, with lower coverage than a reference genome, can be used to study populations cost-effectively. They can provide insight for conservation planning, improve fisheries and wildlife regulation, and enhance restoration outcomes.
Advanced genome sequencing enables researchers to identify genetic markers that convey resistance to disease, or other elements of adaptive fitness.
4. Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics — the merging of data processing, big data, artificial intelligence and biology — brings new perspectives on conservation endeavours. It enables genomics, proteomics and transcriptomics — the sciences of genomes, proteins and RNA transcripts, respectively. Increasing computing power enables faster analysis of the genetic precursors to adaptation, resilience to environmental change and relatedness in wild species.
5. Genome editing
Advances such as CRISPR has made genome editing much more precise and accessible in the past five years. Wildlife managers now have a targeted way to activate disease resistance that may be dormant. It is also possible to “knock in” genetic traits from another species, enabling resistance to new diseases. Moreover, genome editing could accelerate the development of fragile and endangered coral reef systems, making them more resilient to warmer and more acidic oceans.
6. Gene drive
The invasion of non-native pest species, such as rodents, feral pigs and insects, is a significant global threat to biodiversity, especially on biodiversity-rich small islands. Traditional approaches to eradicating such species usually involve powerful biocides that can have harmful off-target effects. New genetic tools may help.
A gene drive is the process by which a particular gene or gene variant is inherited at a high frequency. For example, to address the problem of invasive rodents, a gene drive could be applied to alter the sex ratio of an island population of rats so that they become all male, and fail to breed. Advancements in this technology can allow such traits to be adjustable, regional and reversible.
Gene drive technology could eradicate disease. It looks possible to eliminate a mosquito’s ability to carry human diseases such as malaria, zika and dengue fever, as well as wildlife diseases such as avian malaria.
If responsibly applied, gene drives represent a potentially transformative new tool. However, the high inheritance of the drive makes field application of gene drive technology understandably controversial. Fortunately for conservation, several different types of gene drive are in development, deploying different methodologies to avoid the spread of the drive beyond the target population.
7. Advanced reproductive technologies
Genomics, advanced reproductive techniques and cloning are becoming widely applied in the animal husbandry sector, particularly in the production of bulls for cattle breeding and for top-performing equine athletes in polo and showjumping. When there are cryopreserved tissues, cloning can bring new genetic diversity to critically imperilled species, as well as to those that have suffered through a population bottleneck. Cloning provides new hope for several species of mammal, including the black-footed ferret in North America, the bucardo in Europe and the northern white rhinoceros in Africa.
8. Double-stranded RNA
Global trade and travel inadvertently introduce fungal diseases to landscapes and species that lack an evolved defence. New genomic technologies provide a suite of potential tools to convey disease resistance and reduce the virulence of an infection. In particular, short, double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) are emerging as a powerful disease management tool.
There has been significant commercial investment to develop this technology for the control of various fungal diseases that threaten agricultural production. dsRNAs offer an effective, environmentally friendly way to control specific pathogenic species with few off-target effects. Bat populations in North America have crashed due to a fungal pathogen known as white-nose syndrome. This technology could enable these bats to survive and recover.
9. Synthetic alternatives to wildlife products
Overuse of natural products for biomedical and consumer use continues to cause or threaten extinctions. Synthetic biology offers new manufacturing methods to supplant the demand for wildlife products. For instance, horseshoe crabs, which are harvested and bled for a unique protein used in the safety testing of injectable drugs and vaccines, could be replaced by a synthetic alternative.
Biodiversity in the Fourth Industrial Revolution
A new public-private partnership, harnessing private sector innovation, public sector stewardship, and multiple new technologies could help modernise the biodiversity conservation toolbox. Attention must also be focused on the legitimacy of biotechnology for conservation, and developing a consensus around its use.
With the right genetic tools and partnerships, we may be able to turn the tide on extinction.
Originally published at www.weforum.org.
