GMO mosquitoes will soon be flying over Florida skies. The idea emerged last March: genetically modified mosquitoes could neutralize tiger mosquitoes of the genus Aedes, responsible for the transmission of Zika virus. These GMO insects, developed by the company Oxitec under the name OX513A, contaminate tiger mosquitoes by transmitting to them a gene that would limit their life expectancy and that of their descendants. L’American Medicines Agency (FDA) issued its final opinion on August 5, 2016. It thus gives the green light to Florida to release the GMO mosquitoes attacking Zika.
“No significant impact on the environment”
The FDA conducted environmental studies for several months and concluded that the OX513A mosquito release will not have a significant impact on the environment. This experience must nevertheless be supervised by the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District control center. The area for the first releases of these GM insects will be the island of Key Haven, Florida, which is home to a large population of tiger mosquitoes. On August 1, the Florida Department of Health announced that four people had been infected with Zika, probably by bites from native tiger mosquitoes carrying the virus.
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