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gENETiCally MODifiED MOSqUiTOES Have scientists finally found a way to eradicate dengue? by Jason lai ‘Bzzzz... smack!’ “Look, ma! I squished it with one hand!” Remember that triumphant exclamation over a successful revenge against the mosquito which left you scratching incessantly on top of the annoying buzz as they hovered about your ear? Over time, we became more inventive in ways to kill mosquitoes. Besides the conventional (read: boring) sprays and insecticides, there was the great mosquito zapper. I vividly remember the triumphant smell of burnt mosquitoes and feeding them to my pet ants which found an Killing mosquitoes is big business, aside from relieving us from the intrusive mosquitoes, it is a public health concern. Dengue is no stranger to residents of tropical regions as it rides high on mosquitoes to infect 50-100 million people every year1. Like any other viruses, dengue hosts and continual transmission to other hosts in a cyclical manner. While some viruses leave us with benign consequences, others prove to be too virulent for our bodies to handle;
Illustration by Charis Loke
health as well as public coffers, there are several in clinical trials, the other front is to eradicate those pesky mosquitoes. As fogging works found some success in reducing the number of infections, it is yet a viable long term solution, the prospects of breeding insecticide-resistant Aedes mosquitoes ought to be formulated.
foot and mouth disease), SARS, H5N1, human
transmission is via Aedes mosquitoes are strictly innocent; they too are
surprise by the short notice of the government’s to bring the Aedes population down, inviting the ire of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), especially the ardent antagonists towards
ISSUE 4 / 2012
