VietNamNet Bridge – The project on using mosquitoes to eliminate dengue has been kicked off on Tri Nguyen island of Nha Trang City of Khanh Hoa province.

To date, in order to stop dengue fever epidemics, scientists have all ordered the killing of mosquitoes, which were believed to be the hosts transmitting diseases from some people to others.

However, under the project initiated by the Ministry of Health and the Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang, scientists would try to eliminate dengue epidemics with mosquitoes.

It is expected that in April 2013, tens of thousands of mosquito larva to be created in laboratories would be left at 700 local households’ houses in Tri Nguyen Island. The mosquito larva would develop into the mosquito which can help reduce the transmission of dengue fever.

Dr. Nguyen Tran Hien, Head of the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology Institute, said the mosquito larva bear Wolbachia biological agent, an intracellular organism existing in many insect species in the wild.

The mosquitoes with Wolbachia are described as the ones which have been injecting with the vaccine against the dengue virus infection, because the biological agent can prevent the development of virus in mosquito body. As such, the mosquitoes with Wolbachia will not spread the dengue disease.

Also according to Hien, in fact, the project was implemented in a pilot program in 2006 already, under which a kind of mosquito that did not transmit the viruses causing dengue fever was created from the mosquitoes caught in the Tri Nguyen Island.

And now is the third project of the project, when the mosquitoes with Wolbachia would be released to the narrow community for further research. The findings from the research would help scientists consider the possibility of replacing the natural mosquitoes with “vaccinated mosquitoes.”

Before the mosquitoes with Wolbachina are released on Tri Nguyen Island, people would kill natural mosquitoes in order to reduce the number of natural mosquitoes there by 90 percent.

When the mosquitoes with biological agent are brought to the island, they would cross with the natural mosquitoes.

If male mosquitos with Wolbachia mates with a female natural mosquito, it would create the ovum which will not develop into mosquito. In other cases, the mosquitoes bearing Wolbachia would be created. As such, the vaccinated mosquitoes would dominate the environment in Tri Nguyen Island. This is the final and the most important goal of the project.

A new weapon against dengue

Vietnam is the second country in the world to implement the project on using mosquitoes to prevent and stop dengue epidemics.

Dr. Le Huu Tho, Deputy Director of the Khanh Hoa provincial Healthcare Department, says if the project is successfully implemented, Vietnam would have a new weapon to fight against the dengue.

By the end of 2012, Khanh Hoa had reportedly had 5,300 dengue infected cases, of which five got dead.

Khanh Hoa provincial authorities have got ready to spend big money on research works to find out reasonable solutions to stop dengue in the locality, which has the highest number of dengue infected cases in the central region. Especially, all the four types of viruses causing dengue have been found in Khanh Hoa.

According to Vo Thi Le Chua, Chair of the Vinh Nguyen Ward People’s Committee, despite some worries, the project has been applauded by the majority of local residents.

Thien Nhien