D3172: Understanding sterility in genetically engineered male Drosophila suzukii

Drosophila suzukii is an invasive pest that affects many fresh, soft-skinned fruits such as strawberries and blueberries. To combat this pest, growers use various methods including insecticide sprays, beneficial insects, and sanitation practices. However, these methods are becoming increasingly ineffective against Drosophila suzukii due to increased resistance against insecticides and increasing labor costs. Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) has been used successfully to control many agricultural pests, but the use of irradiation, sex sorting, and the requirement to scale these insects make it costly to implement. pgSIT (precision guided Sterile Insect Technique) is a novel and efficient way to generate sterile males through genetic engineering and overcomes the drawbacks of traditional SIT. pgSIT has been implemented across multiple Dipteran insects, including Drosophila suzukii, and has been shown to suppress wild insect populations. To further understand the basis of sterility in sterile pgSIT males, we evaluated their sperm, capacity to mate, and ability to induce a mating refractory period in wild females. These findings further support the efficacy of pgSIT technology in controlling Drosophila suzukii populations and provide further data to governing regulatory bodies for their use in commercial field settings.