In the Florida Keys, the local mosquito control agency has just approved the release of 750 million genetically engineered mosquitoes.
Oxitec, the U.K.-based company that engineered the mosquitoes, plans to place boxes filled with mosquito eggs in the area, releasing male mosquitoes bred with the self-limiting gene.
Because only female mosquitoes bite humans, this can help stop the spread of disease.
“With repeated releases over a number of weeks, the population of females gradually reduces,” says Kevin Gorman, Oxitec’s head of global field operations.
(Oxitec says that as it has tested its mosquitoes in other areas, it hasn’t seen significant increases of the Asian Tiger mosquito.).
“We would like them to mock up the Florida environment before they release three-quarters of a million mosquitoes.”
He argues that there’s also a risk that the engineered mosquitoes could cross-breed with native species, creating hybrids that might be more resistant to insecticides. »