Bad mosquito population successfully suppressed using SIT - A study

Bad mosquito population successfully suppressed using SIT – A study

The population of most invasive mosquito species was wiped out almost completely by a nuclear sterile insect technique (SIT) with the incompatible insect technique (IIT).

This technology has successfully suppressed the mosquito population and can control dengue, Zika virus, and many other diseases. A study has been published in Nature on 17 July 2019.

The experiment was performed on two islands in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong. The experiment successfully reduced the female Asian Tiger Mosquito population which is the main source of disease transmission, by up to 94% and reducing the number of humans by bite by 96%.

In SIT female mosquitoes were sterilized with low-level radiation while male were infected with Wolbachia bacteria and then both released during the breeding season in 2016 and 2017. The sterile male mates with a wild female, resulting in no offspring and as a result population decrease over time.

It is one of the most effective trials in the reduction of the mosquito population.

Mosquitoes are one of the greatest threats to human health. Guangzhou is densely populated areas saw more than 37,000 thousand people infected with dengue in 2014.

Currently, there is no effective treatment for most of the mosquito-transmitted disease. So mosquito population control method can be very effective.

Source

Incompatible and sterile insect techniques combined eliminate mosquitoes

Incompatible and sterile insect techniques combined eliminate mosquitoes [complete PDF]

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