750 Million Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes Will Be Released In Florida – Good Or Bad Idea?

Don Wood – MessageToEagle.com –  It sounds like an event straight out of a  sci-movie, but this is real and it’s going to happen.

Officials in the Florida Keys have approved a controversial plan to release 750 million genetically engineered mosquitoes, but not without debate, criticism, and allegations of a “Jurassic Park experiment.”

Mosquitoes are one of the most troublesome insects in Florida because they carry serious diseases

Scientists now hope the genetically engineered mosquitos will reduce local populations.

The aim is to reduce the number of mosquitoes that carry diseases like dengue or the Zika virus.

According to researchers, there is nothing to worry about. The company involved says there will be no adverse risk to humans or the environment, and points to a slate of government-backed studies.

Credit: Public Domain

“The Aedes aegypti mosquito is an invasive species found throughout the world—including the Florida Keys—that spreads diseases such as dengue, yellow fever, Zika and chikungunya. However, it is only the females in the species that bite humans and spread disease.

Thus, Oxitec, a U.K.-based company, has modified male Aedes aegypti at the genetic level to only provide live male offspring when mating with a female in the wild. With female offspring unable to survive, the population of insects that transmit disease would greatly reduce—theoretically, at least.

Oxitec representatives say the company has successfully completed projects in the Cayman Islands and Brazil, releasing more than a billion of their mosquitoes over the years with no risk to the environment or humans. They also point to multiple studies from government agencies, including the EPA and CDC, that say the project is safe. However, scientific experts have questioned the validity of these studies, instead pointing to a 2019 study that examined the negative effect of Oxitec’s mosquitoes in Brazil,” Laboratory Equipment reports.

Environmental groups are of a different opinion though. Activists warn of possible damage to ecosystems, and the potential creation of hybrid, insecticide-resistant mosquitoes.

the public seems overwhelmingly unconvinced as well. An EPA public comment period raised many questions and concerns among Florida Keys residents and others, including:

• Toxicity/allergenicity of the engineered proteins in the male mosquitoes
• Possible increase in antibiotic resistance in the environment
• Effects on food supply for insects, animals and humans
• Potential for disease transmission from GM mosquitoes, and more.

Oxitec says they have addressed all concerns, but experts say that’s nearly impossible.

“An ecosystem is so complicated and involves so many species, it would be almost impossible to test them all in advance in a lab,” Max Moreno, an expert in mosquito-borne diseases at Indiana University who is not involved in the company or the pilot project, recently told the Associated Press.

Still, FKMCD board members, of which four approved the project and one dissented, say they feel as if they have no choice as Aedes aegypti has developed a tolerance for many of the area’s pesticides, making them less effective.

“Any approved tools that show promise in helping control this dangerous mosquito are worth examining to the fullest extent. We look forward to working with Oxitec and carrying out this trial as it has the potential to increase effective mosquito control in the rest of the United States,” said Andrea Leal, Executive Director of the FKMCD.

These are indeed comforting words from experts, but many still wonder – what could go wrong when millions of genetically engineered mosquitoes are suddenly released.

Written by Don Wood – MessageToEagle.com Staff