According to a study conducted in Florida, the introduction of genetically modified mosquitoes greatly reduces their numbers.

Oxitec, which announced the first results of its study, has introduced five million genetically modified mosquitoes in seven months in the tropical region of South Florida.

The study aims to reduce the number of wild mosquitoes that can transmit viruses such as chikungunya, dengue, Zika and yellow fever.

And First results Genetically modified mosquitoes are very positive because they do their job. Oxytech has introduced the idea that male mosquitoes bite with a gene that is fatal only to female offspring.

Women were targeted

The larvae are thus not resistant and the mosquitoes thus bred do not reach maturity and lack the proteins necessary for growth. With each generation of mating, the number of mosquitoes decreases.

The genetically modified mosquitoes are Aedes aegypti, which do not represent most mosquitoes that can spread the disease, but they can be applied to other types of subjects introduced in the open.

Therefore, Oxitec reports that other major studies could be carried out to determine whether this genetic modification, which controls the population and the resulting harassment, is applicable to mosquitoes, without aiming to eradicate them.

Method of protecting the environment

This method also has the advantage of protecting the environment because it controls the number of mosquitoes as bats prefer these insects without drying out the wetlands, using harmful pesticides and maintaining the balance of the food chain.

Florida was randomly selected for this study, with 68 cases transmitted domestically by dengue fever in 2010, and again by 2020 72 cases were reported locally.