CRISPR-Based Innovations for Sustainable Pest Control and Enhancement of Beneficial Insects

The rapid growth of agricultural intensification has intensified the demand for innovative, eco-friendly pest management strategies that minimize environmental damage while ensuring food security. Conventional pest control methods, particularly chemical pesticides, have resulted in resistance development, non-target effects, and biodiversity loss. In this context, Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) technology has emerged as a transformative tool in applied entomology. CRISPR offers precise, cost-effective, and targeted genetic modifications that can suppress pest populations and enhance beneficial insects such as pollinators and natural enemies. This chapter explores the application of CRISPR-based genome editing for sustainable pest control and the genetic improvement of beneficial insects. Emphasis is placed on gene drives, sex-ratio distortion, resistance suppression, and enhancement of stress tolerance in beneficial species. Ethical concerns, ecological risks, and regulatory challenges are also discussed. The integration of CRISPR technology into pest management programs represents a promising pathway toward sustainable, resilient, and environmentally responsible agricultural systems