A new technique of introducing a disease-blocking bacteria into mosquitoes has been announced.
Diseases such as dengue fever, yellow fever and malaria, all spread by mosquitoes, may be prevented by the introduction of the disease-blocking bacteria Wolbachia, into the mosquito.
When mosquitoes are infected with the strain of bacteria called wMelPop, they are unable to transmit viruses such as dengue fever which currently has no vaccination and is responsible for up to 40 000 deaths each year. It is difficult however, for the bacteria to spread among the mosquito population as it significantly reduces the ability of the mosquito to lay viable eggs. A suggested method to speed up the transmission of the bacteria involves introducing an insecticide resistance gene alongside Wolbachia into the mosquito. As insecticides are common in malaria and dengue-prone areas, this approach would allow survival of only Wolbachia infected mosquitoes and therefore prevent the transmission of viruses to humans.
This could be a major step forward in the disease control programme with a reduced rate of spread due to less infected mosquitoes.
