Beet armyworm: Gene editing stops female moths from producing pheromones

Female beet armyworms with a deleted gene don’t produce sex pheromones, which could be exploited as a way to control numbers of this agricultural pest

By Gary Hartley

Deleting a gene linked to the production of sex pheromones in the beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua) causes females to lose their attractiveness to males, offering a new potential route to control the species, considered one of the world’s worst agricultural pests.

Shabbir Ahmed at Andong National University in South Korea and his colleagues used the CRISPR genome-editing technology to delete the gene SexiDES5 in caterpillars of the moth, which feed on a wide range of crops such as vegetables, cotton and flowers. …