Scientists breeding 20 million male mosquitoes to fight virus

yinka ogunlami

March 17, 2016 2:09 PM

According to QZ, the scientists are breeding 20 million male mosquitoes per week, to copulate with the wild female mosquitoes causing the zika virus.

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According to , the scientists are breeding 20 million male mosquitoes per week, to copulate with the wild female mosquitoes causing the zika virus.

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The scientist announced on Monday, March 14, 2016 that they are breeding mosquitoes affected with Wolbachia bacteria.

These bacteria is said to produce infertile eggs when they mate with the female mosquitoes causing Zika virus and Dengue fever.

Four workshops with a total area of 3500 square meters that can breed 5 million mosquitoes a week, in Guangzhou city southern China where dengue fever strikes annually.

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It is not confirmed where the bred mosquitoes will be released but the scientists says the project will be released to a small island in Guangzhou in March 2016.

“500,000 mosquitoes sound a lot, but in fact, they’re like a drop in the ocean,” Xi said.

The research team plans to build a mosquito-breeding factory in Brazil.

In a related development, is using the Wolbachia bacteria to reduce the ability of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to transmit disease.

Wolbachia will reduce the ability of insects to become infected with viruses, including the dengue virus. If mosquitoes cannot become infected with dengue, they cannot transmit the virus between people.

The Global Eliminate Dengue Program, so far has released the Wolbachia infected mosquitoes in Austrailia, Vietnam, Brazil and Indonesia.

Watch all you need to know about Wolbachia bacteria below ;

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