Plague of infected mosquitoes to be released in Brazil - but each bloodsucking bug carries bacteria that blocks dengue fever
comments
Dengue fever hits around 390 million each year causing extreme joint pain and headaches, and until now, scientists have been unable to find a drug that can cure it.
Earlier this year, researchers began testing genetically-modified mosquitoes that could eradicate entire populations of the bloodsucking bugs - and now a team of experts has found another way to stop the spread.
They discovered that by infecting the insects with a specific bacteria, it acted in a similar way to a vaccine against the disease, which would stop it being spread to humans.
Researchers in Brazil have freed thousands of mosquitoes infected with a dengue-blocking bacteria in the hope of combating the disease naturally
Scientists in Janeiro infected the mosquitoes with a bacteria called Wolbachia.
The idea is that Wolbachia will act as a vaccine for the mosquito which carries dengue, Aedes aegypti, preventing it from spreading through its body.
When a male mosquito carrying Wolbachia fertilises the eggs of a female without the bacteria, these eggs do not turn into larvae.
If both male and female mosquitoes reproducing are contaminated, their offspring will also carry Wolbachia.
Researchers hope this means Aedes mosquitoes with Wolbachia will spread without them having to contaminate more insects.
Brazil currently has the world's highest the number of dengue cases, with 3.2 million cases and 800 deaths reported in the last five years alone. Pictured is artwork of the Dengue virus
The initiative, by the Rio de Janeiro-based Fiocruz research institute, is part of a programme also taking place in Australia, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Starting with Tubiacanga, in the north of Rio, ten thousand mosquitoes will be released each month for four months throughout Brazil.
Brazil currently has the world's highest the number of dengue cases, with 3.2 million cases and 800 deaths reported in the last five years alone.
The plans follow a similar project earlier this year in which genetically modified mosquitoes were created to combat the fever.
The mosquitoes were engineered in such a way so that their offspring died before reaching maturity.
DENGUE FEVER IS A COMMON VIRAL INFECTION SPREAD BY MOSQUITOES
Dengue is a common viral infection spread by mosquitoes. It is common in tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world, with Brazil having the highest number of cases.
Symptoms include:
- A high temperature that can reach as high as 41ºC
- Headache
- Pain behind the eyes
- Bone, muscle and joint pain
Dengue is spread by infected mosquitoes. An infected human is bitten by the mosquito, the infected mosquito then bites another human and the cycle continues.
The condition is widespread in areas with a high mosquito populations. Dengue usually clears up by itself within two to three weeks.
There are no specific medications to treat the disease but symptoms can be managed using paracetamol.
A number of people will go on to suffer a more serious form of the illness, known as 'severe dengue'.It is a potentially fatal complication which can lead to shock, bleeding and organ damage.
The latest initiative follows a similar project earlier this year in which genetically modified mosquitoes were created to combat the fever
THE GENETICALLY MODIFIED SOLUTION TO DENGUE FEVER
The GM mosquito was created by Oxford-based firm Oxitec.
The Oxitec insect can be used to control the dengue mosquito, Aedes aegypti and is a strain of the wild species that contains two additional genes.
The Oxitec males, which cannot bite, are released to seek out and mate with the wild females.
Their offspring inherit the additional genes and die before becoming functional adults.
They also inherit a marker that is visible under a special light, making monitoring in the field simple and helping ensure that dengue mosquito control programmes succeed.
In several trials, successive releases of the Oxitec males have been shown to reduce substantially the wild population of dengue mosquitoes in the treated area.
This meant male insects were on a suicide mission which involved mating with wild females before they, and their offspring, die.
This, in theory, could reduce the number of wild mosquitoes which carry and spread dengue fever.
Elsewhere, Panama announced plans to release the GM insects into its jungles to similarly help tackle the spread.
The bugs were engineered by Oxford-based firm Oxitec.
Oxitec has developed the technology to create the genetically modified insects which, it claims, can also be used instead of chemicals to protect food crops from pests.
The Oxitec insect is used to control the dengue mosquito, Aedes aegypti, because it is a strain of the wild species that contains two additional genes.
The Oxitec males, which don't bite, are released to seek out and mate with the wild females.
Their offspring inherit the additional genes and die before becoming functional adults.
They also inherit a marker that is visible under a special light, making monitoring in the field simple, and helps ensure that dengue mosquito control programmes succeed.
Starting with Tubiacanga, in the north of Rio, ten thousand mosquitoes will be released each month for four months throughout Brazil
Put the internet to work for you.
0 comments:
Post a Comment