Puducherry As the end of dengue, chikungunya and Zika may finally be in sight, scientists at a major government research center are working to develop domestic vectors infecting bacteria, which will begin to eradicate these viruses in about six months’ time. Will give
The bacteria inhibit the spread of harmful viruses but do not harm the mosquitoes themselves.
After four years of research, scientists from the Vector Control Research Center (VCRC) of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have submitted their findings to an ICMR expert committee. Scientists from Monash University in Australia are crossing local Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with mosquitoes carrying the Wolbachia bacteria, which transmit dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses. This strategy was successfully adopted during the dengue outbreak in Queensland, Australia.
Dr. Ashwini Kumar, Director, VCRC said, “Wolbachia is a bug that occurs naturally in 60% of insects. But our studies have shown that in the case of Aedes mosquito, the carrier of dengue, chikungunya and Zika, this bug Therefore, what we have done is that we have acquired two strains of Aedes aegypti eggs harboring Wolbachia- Wmel and WALB from Monash University with the approval of the Government of India. From these eggs , We have raised colonies of these mosquitoes in our laboratories and allowed females of imported species to mate with Aedes aegypti males of Puducherry breed. Thus, after six to seven generations, the genetic material in mosquitoes Indian Aedes aegypti strain, while Wolbachia is inherited from an Australian strain.”
“We have confirmed this fact by genomic studies.”
ICMR has now asked VCRC to conduct dengue challenge study with these mosquitoes. So far, research has been confined to laboratories; Once this is approved by the government, a pilot will be done by releasing Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes into the community. Between January and May alone, India reported 10,172 cases of dengue in which three people died.
“Wolbachia is transmitted maternally from mother to offspring, and gradually spreads across populations. Wolbachia inhibits the multiplication of dengue virus when present in mosquitoes. The number and frequency of Wolbachia in mosquitoes is determined by molecular tests. If we leave only the males carrying Wolbachia, such males will produce sterile eggs when they mate with wild females. That way, you can actually eliminate the mosquito population, but because of environmental concerns, Not desirable and also because mosquitoes play an important role in pollinators and the food chain,” Dr Kumar said.
Independent risk assessment of this technique has shown that there is minimal risk. Dr Kumar said the final decision on whether these Wolbachia mosquitoes should be released into the community would be taken by the central government.