The Perpetual Vector Mosquito Threat and Its Eco-Friendly Nemeses
The Perpetual Vector Mosquito Threat and Its Eco-Friendly Nemeses
Tags: Aedes, Arbovirus, Biological controlMiranda, L.S.; Rudd, S.R.; Mena, O.; Hudspeth, P.E.; Barboza-Corona, J.E.; Park, H.-W.; Bideshi, D.K., Biology, 13:182. 2024.
Aedes, Culex, and Anopheles mosquitoes are the most prolific arthropod vectors of viral and parasitic agents of debilitating and lethal diseases in humans and animals. Despite some success in integrated pest management programs to control vectors, mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever, yellow fever, chikungunya, West Nile, and Zika, and parasitic diseases, such as malaria, lymphatic filariasis, and river blindness, continue to threaten the health and well-being of half the world’s population, many of whom live in economically and medically challenged societies. The perpetual problem inflicted by vector-borne diseases is compounded by the selection for resistance to synthetic pesticides, globalization, and climate change. The latter appears to be the most significant factor implicated in the geographic expansion of mosquitoes. Here, we present a review of these challenges and highlight traditional vector control strategies that employ synthetic pesticides, and “green” eco-friendly technologies that include SIT, IIT, RIDL, CRISPR/Cas9/Cas13 gene drive systems, and biological control, with an emphasis on Lysinibacillus sphaericus and Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (Bti).
