The non-profit World Mosquito Program (WMP) is set to release modified mosquitoes carrying the Wolbachia bacterium, which prevents the insects from transmitting viruses, in many of Brazil's urban areas over the next 10 years.
A mosquito factory will be built to supply the initiative, with the facility expected to produce up to five billion mosquitoes annually.
Brazil has one of the highest rates of dengue infection, reporting more than two million cases in 2022.
Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes have been shown to reduce the incidence of dengue by 77%, but researchers warn operating the technology on such a large scale may be challenging.
Vocabularies:
- prevent: to stop something from happening or someone from doing something
- annually: once every year
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