 Horizontal Environmental Genetic Alteration Agents

Horizontal Environmental Genetic Alteration Agents (HEGAAs) are any artificially developed agents that are engineered to edit the genome of eukaryotic species they infect when intentionally dispersed into the environment (outside of contained facilities such as laboratories or hospitals).The term “"genetic alteration agent"” first appears in a 2016 work plan by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) describing a tender for contracts to develop genetically modified plant viruses for an approach involving their dispersion into the environment.