Thousands of genetically modified mosquitoes being released in Florida
Thousands of genetically modified mosquitoes being released in Florida
Tags: Aedes, Dengue, Genetic biocontrol, Genetically modified mosquitoes, North America, Oxitec, Sterile insect technique (SIT)T. Lapin, New York Post, 2021.
Thousands of genetically modified mosquitoes have begun to be released in Florida this week as part of an effort to combat a disease-spreading species of the insect. The buzzy project, from British biotech company Oxitec, aims to curb the population of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which can spread diseases such as Zika and dengue fever, The Miami Herald reported. The project aims to have genetically modified male mosquitoes mate with non-modified females, which are the ones that bite. A so-called “death mechanism” would then act to prevent any resulting female offspring from surviving.
