Modified mosquitoes to fight Zika virus

An army of mosquitoes will be infected with bacteria and released into Brazil and Columbia to combat the Zika outbreak.
File photo for representation purpose only | AP
File photo for representation purpose only | AP

AN ARMY of mosquitoes will be infected with bacteria and released into Brazil and Columbia to combat the Zika outbreak.

Scientists are hoping that the millions of modified insects will mate with local mosquitoes and spread the Wolbachia bug throughout wild populations.

Although the Wolbachia bacteria is harmless to humans, it stops mosquitoes transmitting the Zika virus. Zika has spread through 50 countries in the past year and is believed to be responsible for nearly 2,200 cases of microcephaly, where babies are born with shrunken heads and brain damage.

The first large trials will take place next year in Bello in Colombia and the greater Rio de Janeiro area in Brazil, with scientists monitoring locations closely for three years to see if cases of Zika fall. It is also hoped the modified insects will halt the spread of dengue and chikungunya.

If successful, the move could protect two million people against the viruses.

"This really has the potential to be a game-changer in terms of control - the biggest thing since DDT," said Dr Philip McCall, a medical entomologist who studies mosquito control at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. "If it works, it will be truly remarkable, but it has to still be working in 10 years." 

Wolbachia works in two ways: by boosting the immune system of the mosquitoes to make them more resistant to viruses, and using up the resources in the insect's body that the virus relies on to replicate.

The technique was developed by Monash University in Australia, where researchers have spent the last decade conducting field trials. But the project was only given the go-ahead by the World Health Organisation in March.

Professor Scott O'Neill of Monash said: "We have a major problem with the Zika virus being transmitted around the world and there's really no effective treatment to control diseases transmitted by this one mosquito. We're at the stage where we're ready to upscale those deployments to cities." 

The project is being funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. "Wolbachia could be a revolutionary protection against mosquito-borne disease," said Dr Trevor Mundel, of the foundation.

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