Kenya to Release Genetically Modified Mosquitoes to Fight Malaria.

Kenya Medical Research is planning to release genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes to combat malaria. This approach involves altering the genetic makeup of mosquitoes to reduce their ability to spread malaria. Typically, these modifications can either make mosquitoes sterile or reduce their lifespan, thereby decreasing the population of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes.

The strategy is part of a broader effort to leverage biotechnology in the fight against malaria, a disease that remains a significant public health challenge in many parts of Africa. By reducing the population of mosquitoes that can carry the malaria parasite, the spread of the disease can be significantly curtailed.

Methods of Genetic Modification

Sterile Insect Technique (SIT):

Mosquitoes are genetically modified to be sterile, meaning they cannot reproduce. When released into the wild, these sterile mosquitoes mate with wild mosquitoes, leading to no offspring and a reduced mosquito population over time.

Gene Drive:

This technique spreads a specific gene throughout a mosquito population more rapidly than through natural inheritance. Genes can be modified to make mosquitoes resistant to the malaria parasite or to reduce their lifespan, thereby reducing the number of infectious bites.

Self-Limiting Genes:

These genes can cause mosquitoes to die before reaching maturity or to have fewer offspring, this leads to a decline in the mosquito population over several generations