Keywords: World Mosquito Program

Success of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes in fighting dengue may be underestimated

B. Wampler,  Notre Dame News,  2023.
Now, researchers at the University of Notre Dame have conducted an analysis of the World Mosquito Program’s randomized control trial of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes in Indonesia, looking at how excluding transmission dynamics impacted the original interpretation of the ...
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Dengue rates drop after release of modified mosquitoes in Colombia

M. Lenharo,  Nature,  2023.
Three cities in Colombia saw a dramatic fall in the incidence of dengue in the years following the introduction of mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia, a bacterium that prevents the insect from transmitting viruses. In neighbourhoods where the Wolbachia mosquitoes were well ...
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Does ignoring transmission dynamics lead to underestimation of the impact of interventions against mosquito-borne disease?

S. Cavany, J. Huber, H. , A. Wieler, Q. M. Tran, M. Alkuzweny, M. Elliott, G. España, S. Moore, M. and T. A. Perkins,  BMJ Global Health,  8:e012169. 2023.
New vector-control technologies to fight mosquito-borne diseases are urgently needed, the adoption of which depends on efficacy estimates from large-scale cluster-randomised trials (CRTs). The release of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes is one promising strategy to curb dengue virus ...
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Is Bill Gates Releasing Millions of GMO Mosquitoes?!

A. Wong,  Tech ARP,  2023.
Claim : Bill Gates Is Releasing Millions Of GMO Mosquitoes! People are sharing a World Mosquito Program video as evidence that Bill Gates is manufacturing and releasing 30 million genetically-mosquitoes every week, from his mosquito factory in Colombia.
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An economic evaluation of Wolbachia deployments for dengue control in Vietnam

H. C. Turner, D. L. Quyen, R. Dias, P. T. Huong, C. P. Simmons and K. L. Anders,  PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases,  17:e0011356. 2023.
INTRODUCTION: Dengue is a major public health challenge and a growing problem due to climate change. The release of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia is a novel form of vector control against dengue. However, there remains a need to ...
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Bill Gates’ Colombian Mosquito Factory Breeding 30 Million Bacteria-Infected Mosquitos Per Week

anonymous,  GREATGAMEINDIA,  2022.
Bill Gates’ Colombian ‘mosquito factory’ is breeding 30 million bacteria-infected mosquitos per week. The project’s objective appears to be to introduce Wolbachia into native mosquito populations by employing lab-bred mosquitoes, resulting in the infection of such ...
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Changing mosquito genes, spreading bacteria: Science sees success vs dengue

C. E. Baclig,  INQUIRER.NET,  2022.
Wolbachia, according to WMP, are extremely common bacteria that occur naturally in 50 percent of insect species, including mosquitoes, fruit flies, moths, dragonflies, and butterflies. Aedes aegypti or dengue-carrying mosquitoes, however, do not normally carry Wolbachia. Studies ...
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International shipments of Wolbachia-infected mosquito eggs: towards the scaling-up of World Mosquito Program operations

J. A. Denton, D. A. Joubert, A. A. Goundar and J. R. L. Gilles,  Scientific and Technical Review,  41:91-99. 2022.
The Wolbachia insect control method, employed by the World Mosquito Program (WMP), relies on introgressing Wolbachia through target Aedes aegypti populations to reduce the incidence of dengue. Since 2010, the WMP has been producing Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes at numerous sites ...
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Aedes aegypti abundance and insecticide resistance profiles in the applying Wolbachia to eliminate dengue trial

W. Tantowijoyo, S. K. Tanamas, I. Nurhayati, S. Setyawan, N. Budiwati, I. Fitriana, I. Ernesia, D. S. Wardana, E. Supriyati, E. Arguni, Y. Meitika, E. Prabowo, B. Andari, B. R. Green, L. Hodgson, E. Rancès, P. A. Ryan, S. L. O'Neill, K. L. Anders, M. R. A,  PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases,  16:e0010284. 2022.
The Applying Wolbachia to Eliminate Dengue (AWED) trial was a parallel cluster randomised trial that demonstrated Wolbachia (wMel) introgression into Ae. aegypti populations reduced dengue incidence. In this predefined substudy, we compared between treatment arms, the relative ...
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Environmental factors influence the local establishment of Wolbachia in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in two small communities in central Vietnam [version 2]

N. T. Hien, D. D. Anh, N. H. Le, N. T. Yen, T. V. Phong, V. S. Nam, T. N. Duong, N. B. Nguyen, D. T. T. Huong, L. Q. Hung, C. N. T. Trinh, N. V. Hoang, V. Q. Mai, L. T. Nghia, N. T. Dong, L. H. Tho, S. Kutcher, T. P. Hurst, J. L. Montgomery, M. Woolfit, E,  Gates Open Research,  5:147. 2022.
Background: The wMel strain of Wolbachia has been successfully introduced into Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and subsequently shown to reduce transmission of dengue and other pathogens, under both laboratory and field conditions. Here we describe the entomological outcomes of wMel ...
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Special mosquitos to combat dengue fever in Binh Duong

L. Phuong,  VN Express,  2022.
Capsules containing mosquito eggs resistant to dengue fever viruses were released in southern Binh Duong's Thu Dau Mot Town on Thursday to help control the disease. The Wolbachia Project in southern Vietnam, conducted by the World Mosquito Program and collaborators, seeks to ...
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Dengue fever: Upstaged but not outmatched by COVID-19

C. E. Baclig,  INQUIRER.NET,  2021.
Science has made gains in the war on dengue and other diseases that mosquitoes carry, like malaria.One of these is the World Mosquito Program (WMP), a non-profit initiative that aims to protect the global community from mosquito-borne viral diseases, by deploying a natural ...
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How to engage communities on a large scale? Lessons from World Mosquito Program in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil [version 2; peer review: 1 approved, 2 approved with reservations]

G. B. Costa, R. Smithyman, S. L. O'Neill and L. A. Moreira,  Gates Open Research,  2021.
Here we discuss and analyse the framework for community engagement implemented by the WMP in Brazil, during the large-scale deployment of the method in the municipalities of Niterói and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Our experience indicates that the community engagement work for ...
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Non-GMO approach reduces cases of mosquito-borne dengue by 77%

GM Watch,  GM Watch,  2020.
A randomized field trial found that mosquitoes infected with a natural bacterium called Wolbachia reduced cases of dengue by an "extraordinary" 77%.
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Bacteria-Laced Mosquitoes Limit Spread of Dengue

A. Heidt,  The Scientist,  2020.
Researchers have infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes—the species responsible for passing on many diseases—with bacteria called Wolbachia with the intent of reducing the insects’ ability to pass on dengue to people.
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Scientists infect mosquitoes with bacteria to stop the transmission of dengue fever in Indonesia, dropping infection rates by 77 percent

D. Avery,  Daily Mail,  2020.
The team found that dengue infections were 77 percent lower in treated neighborhoods, compared to areas not exposed to the infected insects.
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The mosquito strategy that could eliminate dengue

E. Callaway,  Nature,  2020.
The study, conducted in an Indonesia city, showed that releasing mosquitoes modified to carry a bacterium called Wolbachia, which stops the insects from transmitting some viruses, led to a steep drop in cases of dengue fever.
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Researchers Find New Approach To Control Dengue, Zika By Genetically Modifying Mosquitoes

N. Sharma,  R. Republicworld.com,  2020.
A new study carried out in Indonesia has shown that dengue infection rates decreased in regions where the genetically modified mosquitoes were introduced.
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Australian research takes aim at dengue, another killer virus

E. Connors,  Finanacial Review,  2020.
Australian researchers have teamed up with Indonesian philanthropists to strike a blow against dengue fever, the deadly disease that was a growing scourge in south-east Asia and South America long before COVID-19.
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Australian scientists slash dengue fever in Indonesia by infecting mosquitoes with bacteria

A. Barker,  ABC News,  2020.
Australian scientists may have found the secret to eradicating dengue fever, with a lengthy trial in Indonesia drastically reducing the incidence of the mosquito-borne virus.
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