Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in the laboratory — they carry viruses harmful to humans. Credit: MARVIN RECINOS/AFP
Cyprus is releasing millions of mosquitoes that have been irradiated and sterilized in an attempt to stop the spread of dengue fever and other potentially deadly diseases across Europe.
The island's authorities have targeted a species of mosquito that carry potentially deadly dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever and West Nile viruses.
They want to prevent it from spreading to the rest of Europe, where it will pose a serious threat to human health.
View , called Aedes aegypti, but also known as the yellow fever mosquito, first appeared in Cyprus last year.
Experts are also targeting a second mosquito species, Aedes albopictus, which carries a similar range of diseases.
The Aedes aegypti mosquito injects its beam through the surface of the human host's skin. Photo: SMITH COLLECTION/GADO/ARCHIVE PHOTOS
Scientists capture male mosquitoes and expose them to x-ray radiation until they stop breeding.
They are then released back into the wild, where their inability to reproduce will eventually mean that the species will be wiped out.
The birth control strategy known as the sterile insect method or SIT has been used in other countries, but it is used for the first time in Cyprus.
An alternative could be spraying insecticides, but they are harmful to both the environment and human health.
The pilot project is focused on the tourist resort of Larnaca, in the east Mediterranean island.
Sterilized in laboratories
Mosquitoes are collected in Cyprus and then sent to laboratories in Italy and to the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, where they are sterilized by exposure to ionizing radiation.
Cyprus released the first batch of 100,000 mosquitoes. June 13 and since then two more batches have been released. The pilot project, which will last until the end of the year, aims to create a population that gradually declines until it is completely destroyed.
“The presence of two species of invasive mosquitoes has created serious problems for Cyprus and, if Aedes aegypti is not eradicated, could have serious consequences for the whole of Europe,” said Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the IAEA. «The SIT pilot project offers a nuclear solution and its success will have far-reaching benefits for Cyprus and the world.» co-leads the project with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
The sterile insect technique has been used for decades to control agricultural pests such as the Mediterranean fruit fly, New World larvae and tsetse flies.
Threat from invasive species
It is hoped that a pilot trial in Cyprus will demonstrate the feasibility of an anti-mosquito strategy . Experts believe that Aedes aegypti still lives in a relatively small area, which means that the chances of its destruction are high.
Previous pilot tests resulted in an almost 100% reduction in Aedes aegypti in Cuba in 2020 and Aedes albopictus in China in 2017.
“We are aware of the threat posed by these invasive mosquito species, especially Aedes aegypti. and we are making significant efforts to prevent their spread,” said Dr. Popi Kanari, Minister of Health of Cyprus.
Each batch of sterilized mosquitoes will be released in a village near Larnaca International Airport, about 30 miles to south of Nicosia, the divided capital of the island.
«In this pilot trial, we want to prove for the first time that the SIT can be used to eradicate the mosquito population,» said Jeremy Buie, a medical entomologist who participated in the study. in the project.
While attempts are being made to sterilize the insect, the Cypriot authorities have said that people should continue to take precautions against mosquitoes, from using insecticide-treated mosquito nets, to attaching mosquito nets to windows, wearing clothing with long sleeves and trousers and spraying plenty of mosquito repellent.
Свежие комментарии