Weevil Resistant Sweetpotato Through Biotechnology

African sweetpotato weevils (SPW), Cylas puncticollis and C. brunneus, pose a major threat to sweetpotato, which plays a vital role in food security and income generation for both the urban and rural poor in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). SPW can limit sweetpotato production causing total crop loss. Control methods such as integrated pest management and breeding have not succeeded satisfactorily in curbing out these pests thus opening the door for using biotechnology and genetic engineering to make transgenic sweetpotato that are resistant to weevil infestation.