Thursday, April 22, 2021

Self-Destructing Mosquitoes

By Reason Staff - April 22, 2021 at 06:00AM

topicsphoto

Under ordinary circumstances, no self-respecting Floridian would consent to someone intentionally unleashing mosquitoes on their neighborhood. But a genetically engineered version of Aedes aegypti created by the bioscience firm Oxitec is changing that. The company's Friendly™ male mosquitoes pass a genetic self-destruct code to all of their blood-drinking and dengue-transmitting female offspring, which over time suppresses the local Aedes aegypti population. The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District is undertaking a collaborative pilot project using Oxitec's Friendly™ mosquitoes in small areas of the Florida Keys in spring 2021.



Read Entire Article Here: Reason Magazine Articles

via IFTTT