Hawaii Is Eyeing GMO Mosquitoes To Save Birds From Extinction
A number of scientists from around the world have been proposed to use genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes to keep the transmission of dengue, Zika and other-mosquito-borne illnesses in control. However, this idea was first proposed years ago by officials in Hawaii, but for a different purpose altogether.
The government agencies and scientists in Hawaii have been eyeing for the use of GM mosquitoes to save their endangered birds from getting extinct. The State of Aloha in Hawaii possesses an amazing treasure in the form of birds that are hardly found anywhere else in the world.
Considering those birds as their own responsibility, the officials handling the Kauai Forest Bird Recovery Project want to take care of the remaining species and eliminate the mosquito-borne disease threats those birds face.
Hawaii's isolated bird species face a big threat from mosquitoes, especially in the form of availan malaria. This is the reason why researchers are ready to consider all measures to contain the disease, including genetic engineering.
So far on Kauai, seven out of island's 13 forest birds have already become extinct. Three species of birds out of the remaining six have a population of less than 1,000 members. What's more dreadful is the estimate surrounding the future of the remaining species. It has been predicted that they could be soon gone because of climate change and disease risk.
Luke Alphey of British Comapny Oxitec was the first person to genetically modify a sterile mosquito when he first learned about the condition in Hawaii. He was also the person who genetically modified the Aedes aegypti male mosquito to produce offspring's that die quickly. This helped reduce the overall mosquito population.
The researcher is now working on creating a prototype genetic strain of Culex quinquefasciatus, the mosquito that affects the Hawaiian birds. According to Alphey, the use of genetically altered mosquito can help improve the situation of bird population in Hawaii.
