Leaning Into the Bite: The piRNA Pathway as an Exemplar for the Genetic Engineering Need in Mosquitoes

The piRNA pathway is a specialized small RNA interference that in mosquitoes is
mechanistically distant from analogous biology in the Drosophila model. Current genetic
engineering methods, such as targeted genome manipulation, have a high potential to
tease out the functional complexity of this intricate molecular pathway. However, progress
in utilizing these methods in arthropod vectors has been geared mostly toward the
development of new vector control strategies rather than to study cellular functions.
Herein we propose that genetic engineering methods will be essential to uncover the full
functionality of PIWI/piRNA biology in mosquitoes and that extending the applications of
genetic engineering on other aspects of mosquito biology will grant access to a much
larger pool of knowledge in disease vectors that is just out of reach. We discuss
motivations for and impediments to expanding the utility of genetic engineering to study
the underlying biology and disease transmission and describe specific areas where efforts
can be placed to achieve the full potential for genetic engineering in basic biology in
mosquito vectors. Such efforts will generate a refreshed intellectual source of novel
approaches to disease control and strong support for the effective use of approaches
currently in development.