For several years, the company Oxitec has been conducting experiments on populations of genetically modified male mosquitoes which contaminate female mosquitoes of the variety Aedes aegypti (better known as tiger mosquitoes) by transmitting to them a gene that limits both their life expectancy and that of their descendants.
And since April 2021, it has regularly organized releases of genetically modified mosquitoes in certain territories of Florida, in order to determine whether these insects can really fulfill the mission entrusted to them, namely to suppress the wild population of mosquitoes carrying viruses to reduce the risk of epidemics. Remember that tiger mosquitoes can carry viruses such as chikungunya, dengue fever, Zika and yellow fever.
The conclusions of this experiment have not yet been published but the company communicated the first results duringa webinar on April 6. In total, over the past year, more than 5 million mosquitoes have been released in Florida and tests carried out on egg-laying sites have shown that female mosquitoes having inherited the lethal gene died before reaching adulthood. They also found that the killer gene persisted in the wild population for 2-3 months, or about three generations of mosquito descendants, before disappearing.
This Florida study was only a first step. The company now plans to release mosquitoes at a second study site in Visalia, California, where it is building a research and development facility.
Source : Biotech firm announces results from first US trial of genetically modified mosquitoesNature, April 2022
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