Last week we briefly looked at how health officials throughout Latin America are preparing for a possible dengue fever outbreak. (Bolivia’s government has reportedly distributed over 4000 candles coated with mosquito repellant, for example).Scientists have been working for decades to figure out how to curb the speared of dengue via infected mosquitoes. Researchers in California, for instance, have created a new breed of mosquito that cannot fly. Meanwhile scientists at Cornell University identified a unique way to possible prevent the spread of dengue:
The scientists identified a protein that appears to be involved in promoting urination as the insects feed on blood. When mosquitoes consume and process blood meals, they must urinate to prevent fluid and salt overloads that can kill them, as well as shed weight to be able to fly away, the scientists said.There is currently no vaccine or similar treatment to avoid dengue apart from preventative measures. Nonetheless, it’s possible that the work by researchers could lead to a vaccine against an illness that the Centers for Disease Control cites as infecting 100 million people yearly.
"Thus, blocking the function of this protein in natural populations of mosquitoes may limit their ability to survive the physiological stresses of a blood meal and to further transmit viruses," researcher Peter Piermarini said.
Image- ABC Online
Online Sources- Centers for Disease Control, Wikipedia, The Latin Americanist, Voice of America, UPI
Genetic modification seems to be a viable long-term solution. There’s another long-term solution: Mosquito Magnets. They interrupt the breeding cycle and can dramatically reduce their population for an entire summer long.
ReplyDeleteHere's an example of one:
http://www.mosquitomagnet.com/store/mosquito-magnet-traps/mm3300