Anti-dengue mosquitoes will be released in Australia and Vietnam

[Gert van der Hoek]

september 30 , 2010

World first release of unique mosquitoes

MOSQUITOES infected with a bacteria known to block transmission of dengue fever have been approved for release into the wild in Australia's north, in a world first.

Scientists can soon begin field trials of a unique method for combating the potentially fatal infection, which now afflicts up to 100 million people a year across the tropics.

Today it was announced that the Eliminate Dengue Project, backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has received final regulatory and safety approvals.

The first of the mosquitoes to be infected with wolbachia - a bacteria otherwise found widely in fruit flies and other insects - will be set free at sites near Cairns early next year.

"We're hoping that in the course of one wet season we should be able to take a study area and see the wolbachia invade the whole population of mosquitoes," project leader Scott O'Neill, from the University of Queensland, said.

"The main effect that it has is to prevent the mosquito from being able to transmit dengue."


Read more: http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news...#ixzz1101uRzcu

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Australia: World first release of unique mosquitoes

Anti-dengue mosquitoes to hit Australia and Vietnam

Infected mosquitoes will be released in Australia and Vietnam.

08 October 2010

MOSQUITOES infected with bacteria that stop them transmitting the dengue virus will be released into the wild next year.

Some 100 million people in the tropics get dengue fever each year, and 40,000 are killed by it. The virus's range is expanding, and last week France reported its first locally acquired cases.

Scott O'Neill of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, and colleagues have found a fruit-fly bacterium called Wolbachia that infects Aedes mosquitoes, and makes them less able to carry the dengue virus. It also halves their lifespan - which is crucial, as only elderly insects transmit disease.

Read more

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Anti-dengue mosquitoes will be released in Australia and Vietnam

Snip from an article; Malaysia backs away from releasing genetically modified mosquitoes.

According to the news service [AFP], "Muhyiddin was cool on a plan to release genetically modified mosquitoes designed to combat dengue fever, in a proposed landmark field trial that has come in for criticism from environmentalists." He said that approach would not be used "at the moment" (9/20).

http://globalhealth.kff.org/Daily-Reports/2010/September/22/GH-092210-Roundups.aspx

Note: Australia and Vietnam wil NOT release genetically modified mosquitoes, they will release infected mosquitoes.

More on possible strategies for infection of mosquitoes in these threads:

Researchers dengue fever breakthrough will halve lifespane of mosquitoes

Malaria researchers identify new mosquito virus






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