This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Fire ants have earned their reputation as one of Australia's most damaging invasive pests. From ruined picnics to serious impacts on agriculture, biodiversity and public health, they are notoriously difficult to control.
CSIRO researchers are exploring a new approach to help tackle fire ant colonies in a more precise and environmentally considerate way: using a gene-silencing technology called RNA interference (RNAi). The research is still underway, but these advances in biologically based technologies could change the future of pest control. RNAi-based fire ant baits could be an additional eco-friendly tool in the toolbox to tackle this difficult pest.
RNAi is a natural biological process that can be used to interrupt the genetic instructions cells use to make essential proteins. Kumaran Nagalingam has been working in pest management for more than 15 years and thinks RNAi could make a huge difference in pest control. "Genes act like instruction manuals.
When a gene is active, it produces messenger RNA, which tells the cell how to build a specific protein. RNAi works by introducing a matching complementary RNA molecule, blocking that instruction and preventing the protein from being produced," Nagalingam explained. "If you silence the right gene, the organism can no longer function normally.
"We are not changing the ant's DNA permanently; we are temporarily interrupting messages that tell the ant how to function. The key is choosing the right message to block." RNAi is complex, but Nagalingam finds comparing it to a computer virus helps people understand the basic concept. "Traditional pesticides are a bit like wiping your entire hard drive to get rid of a computer virus.
It eliminates the threat, but it affects everything else on the computer too," he said. "By contrast, RNAi is like a highly specific software patch. It's coded to find and neutralize only the malicious virus, leaving your other programs and files running smoothly." "Both approaches are important because different circumstances call for different tools: Broad treatments can be essential when fast, wide-ranging control is needed, while highly targeted options may be better when precision and minimizing unintended effects are the priority." Fire ants have tens of thousands of genes, many of which are essential for basic survival.
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