Paradise altered: EPA approves first release of genetically modified mosquitoes in Florida Keys
By Taylor White | April 19, 2021
A biologist releases genetically modified mosquitoes in February 2016 in Piracicaba, Brazil. Technicians from the Oxitec laboratory released genetically modified mosquitoes Aedes Egypti to combat Zika virus. (Photo by Victor Moriyama/Getty Images) A biologist releases genetically modified mosquitoes in February 2016 in Piracicaba, Brazil. Technicians from the Oxitec laboratory released genetically modified mosquitoes Aedes Egypti to combat Zika virus. (Photo by Victor Moriyama/Getty Images)
Editor’s note: This story was originally published by UNDARK. It appears here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.
This spring, the biotechnology company Oxitec plans to release genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes in the Florida Keys. Oxitec says its technology will combat dengue fever, a potentially life-threatening disease, and other mosquito-borne viruses — such as Zika — mainly transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.
While there have been more than 7,300 dengue cases reported in the United States between 2010 and 2020, a majority are contracted in Asia and the Caribbean, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Florida, however, there were 41 travel-related cases in 2020, compared with 71 cases that were transmitted locally.
https://thebulletin.org/2021/04/paradise-altered-epa-approves-first-release-of-genetically-modified-mosquitoes-in-florida-keys/
