SOUTH TEXAS — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) launched the Genetic Utilization for Advanced Regulation and Defense of Indigenous and Native Species (GUARDIAN) program in late April to develop advanced biological suppression technologies. This initiative is part of federal efforts to address a New World Screwworm outbreak affecting livestock and pets in the U.S.
As of June 8, the USDA recorded six screwworm cases in the U.S., with five cases in cattle and goats in Texas and one case in a dog in New Mexico. The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service confirmed a screwworm case in a three-week-old calf in south Texas on June 3. The confirmed calf was located approximately 50 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. The screwworm was eradicated in the U.S. by the Department of Agriculture in 1966.
The USDA and APHIS are managing the operational response by quarantining animals and releasing sterile flies in south Texas. "GUARDIAN is focused on developing future tools — not on day-to-day surveillance or current response operations," said Catherine Campbell, a program manager in DARPA's Biological Technologies Office. "Unlike current reactive methods, GUARDIAN seeks to develop proactive, long-term solutions for protecting agricultural resources and native species to safeguard U.S. agriculture and ecosystem health while prioritizing safety and responsible innovation," she said.
"The approach centers on developing advanced suppression technologies — safe, sustainable biological solutions that build on proven, mating-based methods to rapidly suppress and push back screwworm populations," Campbell said. "These technologies are engineered to be thousands of times more effective than current approaches while still integrating directly with USDA operations," said Stephen Winchell, Director of DARPA. "The program's role is to advance the next generation of tools under rigorous evaluation, so validated options are ready if and when they are needed," Campbell said.
The screwworm is endemic in parts of the Caribbean and South America. Its larvae burrow into the living tissue of warm-blooded animals. Adult screwworm flies have bright orange eyes, metallic blue or green bodies with three dark stripes, and are slightly larger than houseflies.
DARPA initiated its screwworm efforts under GUARDIAN based on submissions from an opportunity in November. The agency launched the Ag x BTO initiative to develop solutions for defending the agricultural supply chain against natural and human-made threats. "Recognizing food security as a critical national security priority, this initiative leveraged a rapid acquisition strategy to solicit disruptive technologies in areas such as early warning systems, rapid countermeasures, and advanced crop engineering," Campbell said. In February, the Department of Defense and USDA signed a cabinet-level memorandum of understanding aligned with the second Trump administration's National Farm Security Action Plan. DARPA also signed a separate agreement with the USDA chief scientist to collaborate on agricultural security and address risks from non-native pests.
No independent assessment was available for this report.