Observatoire des droits humains (anglais seulement)

We turned off moths’ sex signals – this could be the key to greener pest control

(Version anglaise seulement)

par Marie Inger Dam, Researcher, Biotechnology, Lund University

A single “sexy” gene could help us combat one of the world’s most destructive fruit pests. By deleting the gene that lets female moths produce their mating scent, colleagues and I created an “unsexy” moth – and showed one way to turn insect attraction into a powerful pest control tool.

You’ve probably seen moths flittering around a bright lamppost on a balmy summer night. Those same insects, in their larval form, are the worms that burrow into your apples and peaches, making them serious…

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