SAN ANTONIO – A company working to stop the spread of the New World screwworm has chosen Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio as the site for major new research, a project expected to bring 40 jobs and support efforts to protect Texas livestock, wildlife and pets.
The New World screwworm is a parasitic fly that feeds on the tissue of warm-blooded animals. It poses a serious threat to cattle, other livestock, wildlife and household pets, making containment and eradication efforts a priority for scientists and agriculture leaders.
It can rarely affect birds and humans, but has not sickened any humans in this current outbreak.
Cory Hallam, executive vice president at Texas Biomed, said the goal is to stop the insect from multiplying.
“Essentially what you’re trying to do is, through whichever technology you’re deploying, eliminate its ability to continue reproducing,” Hallam said.
Research company Flyttr will use Texas Biomed’s Biosafety Level 3 containment lab for the work. Hallam said the institute had the only available space in Texas that could support research at that level, and the lab happened to be between studies.
Their containment lab requires scientists to wear suits and other safety gear while conducting research.
The work is expected to begin in the next several weeks.
Researchers will help create sterile flies designed to stop screwworms from reproducing. They will also test other technologies that could work faster and more efficiently.
“They’ll be doing the real, intense scientific work here on the campus in the containment labs,” Hallam said. “And then the company will be looking to expand the actual production of those flies at a larger facility, typically a warehouse-type environment.”
The project also means new jobs in San Antonio. Hallam said Flyttr is hiring locally and nationally, training workers and continuing to work with the city as it expands its facilities.
Hallam said having the research in San Antonio matters because of the potential impact on Texas agriculture.
“The prevalence of an invasive species like this that could destroy the livelihood of farmers and cattle stocks and other things has to be protected against,” Hallam said. “And so that is a very big deal for us and for Texas.”
The effort has drawn support from local leaders, including San Antonio’s mayor. Hallam said the project reflects the city’s growing role in biotechnology and science.
“She understands that it is important to the state, important to the city, important for jobs and, truly put, science, to work for us to help protect us and our families,” Hallam said.
Flyttr’s research is expected to get underway at Texas Biomed in the coming weeks, with the company looking toward larger-scale production after the lab work advances.
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