> Last week in the local newspaper there was a short filler
> AP squib on some researchers working on a method by which
> mosquitoes could carry a gene for immunity to Malaria..
> theory being that the little *biscuit eater* offspring
> could bite you and actually immunize you against getting
> malaria.. hmmm-mmmmm...now if they would only get something
> fatal from us in the process...
>
> Tom

They didn't say how this gene would spread in the population, did they? If
it didn't convey a selective advantage to the mosquito, there wouldn't be a
whole lot of offspring to spread the gene. I suppose they could link it to
a gene that glowed in the dark, so we could look for these rare, glowing
mosquitos to which to present our tasty flesh. But still, with no
advantage, the gene would probably disappear in a few generations. And of
course you wouldn't want the mosquito to get something fatal from you--that
would really get rid of the gene fast!

Or was this article proboscis in cheek?

Dennis Paulson, Director phone 206-756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax 206-756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416