ICMR-VCRC Develops Bacteria-Infected Mosquitoes To Control Dengue, Chikungunya Strains

The ICMR-VCRC in order to control Chikungunya and Dengue has developed female mosquitoes with a microscopic organism which will lead to larvae without the viruses.

New Delhi: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Vector Control Research Center (VCRC) in a bid to control Dengue and Chikungunya have developed a special kind of female mosquitoes which will mate with male mosquitoes and produce larvae that would not carry these viruses, reported ANI. The VCRC which has been working on this project for four years says it has completed the study but awaits government approvals before it releases the mosquitoes on a weekly basis in local areas.

The research center which is in Puducherry developed two colonies of Aedes aegypti, infected with wMel and wAlbB Wolbachia strains called Ae. aegypti (Pud) for decreasing the spread of the viral disease.

The VCRC had been working for the last four years on Wolbachia mosquitoes which is a microscopic organism.

“It is actually an endosymbiont. We call it endo means inside and biont means give and take relationship. What it does by sitting in every cell of mosquito, it actually makes it a home and then all Wolbachia here can effectively control the viruses, like dengue virus” said Director, ICMR-VCRC, Dr Ashwani Kumar to ANI.

Around ten thousand eggs containing two strains wMel and wAlbB were brought for the research from Monash University and cleared by the Indian government.

“These Wolbachia eggs hatch the mosquitoes and then we back cross them with the local strain of Puducherry Aedes aegypti and now we have created that mosquitoes of Puducherry having Wolbachia. After backcrossing now we have stable lines of Wolbachia carrying these mosquitoes.” Dr Ashwani explained.

These mosquitoes have been found fit for replacing both dengue and chikungunya viruses, Dr Ashwani further said,  “We have done their fitness studies, we have done their virus challenge studies and we have found that in need they can bring down substantially copy number of these viruses of both dengue and chikungunya viruses.”

"We have prepared mosquitoes to replace Dengue and Chikungunya mosquitoes. We will release female mosquitoes which will mate with males and produce larvae who do not have these viruses. We have prepared mosquitoes and eggs and can release them anytime," Dr Ashwani Kumar added.

While the project awaits government approvals, Dr Kumar said that the project has good potential in technology. 

“There can be sensitivities about the release of mosquitoes because every week the mosquitoes in the local area in order to replace the local population with the wall Wolbachia carrying mosquitoes. So, you have to prepare communities, political leaders, and society as a whole in accepting that the mosquitoes are being released,” he informed.

(With ANI inputs)