These mosquitoes were not just mosquitoes that lived in the backyard of a balcony. Each one was infected with Wolbachia, a bacterium common in insect cells.For us, the most interesting feature of Wolbachia is that it prevents dengue virus from replicating in the mosquito tissue, so that mosquitoes can't transmit the virus to humans and prevent dengue from spreading.

Infecting mosquitoes with bacteria to fight dengue is a roundabout strategy, and we do it because there are few options available.Dengue fever, commonly known as "broken bone fever," causes disabling pain and infects 390 million people each year.Because there is no treatment, the main prevention strategy has been for the mosquito that spreads the virus - Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes.However, mosquitoes have become resistant to drugs, common insecticides such as temephos have become ineffective, Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes often suck blood during the day, and mosquito nets are barely functional.At present, one of the most promising tools for curbing mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria is clearly to allow wolbachia to spread among wild mosquitoes.

Using wolbachia to fight dengue is not a natural choice.In natural conditions, normallyit does not appear in most dengue-transmitting mosquitoes, which must be artificially infected in the laboratory.In other words, we infect mosquitoes with wolbachia to make them resistant to dengue, and then release them into the wild, then hope that they can pass on the bacteria to future generations.Although wolbachia may reduce the production of insect eggs, it is generally harmless to mosquitoes and the environment.The potential benefits for humans are clear: if most wild mosquitoes are infected with wolbachia, the risk of dengue fever in humans is reduced.

——Excerpt from “South Daily”.