America Could Wipe Out Mosquito-Borne Diseases—If Regulators Let It
Mosquitoes Are a Choice
Dengue cases in the US jumped 360% in 2024, and malaria returned in 2023. The technology to eliminate disease-carrying mosquitoes exists: Oxitec's gene-edited Aedes cut populations by up to 95% in field trials, and Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes reduced dengue by 70% in Singapore. But Oxitec's application spent 15 years bouncing between the USDA, FDA, and EPA, and its commercial registration is still pending. The 1986 Coordinated Framework is the bottleneck.
The United States is sufficiently well-resourced, and its disease-carrying mosquito population sufficiently small, that it can stamp out this problem entirely within its own borders. The reason we haven’t is that the technology has spent fifteen years in regulatory limbo.
- mw67
having spent the summer in Singapore I can confirm its a delight to enjoy hot weather's outdoor activities without any mosquito to be found
- rlpb
If the various regulatory bodies are disclaiming jurisdiction over the matter, then what is preventing these companies from proceeding without their blessing?
- zhivota
Does anyone know if this is possible to DIY? I live in an area where dengue is endemic on a substantial land area and would be interested.
- nephihaha
The mosquito is part of the ecosystem, and remove that and you remove the food source for many creatures including bats, frogs, swallows/swifts and many others.
I agree they are a nuisance but they do not exist on their own. Many of them spend their time feeding on plants rather than blood.
Bill Gates is involved in this. Always a red flag.
- vlod
Isn't there a knock on effect of removing them?
Does anything eat them as food? Wouldn't it be environmentally damaging to remove a source of food for X?