Red and sterile mosquitoes to fight dengue… One year after experiencing the worst dengue epidemic in 30 years, Argentina is implementing innovative solutions to limit the number of cases of the disease this year. Authorities in several provinces have released thousands of sterile red mosquitoes to limit the proliferation of insects.
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With our correspondent in Buenos Aires, Théo Conscience
Authorities in Mendoza province released 10,000 laboratory-bred and sterilized male mosquitoes this week. Objective, that they mate with females to limit the proliferation of mosquitoes and cases of dengue fever.
Placed under the control of the provincial Ministry of Health and the municipality, this experiment is intended to be implemented on a larger scale if it proves effective.
In addition to being sterile, the released mosquitoes have the particularity of not biting humans and are recognizable by their fluorescent red color, to prevent them from killing them.
At the same time, several provinces have purchased hundreds of thousands of doses of vaccines which they have already started to administer free of charge to certain categories of the population.
Last year, Argentina experienced the worst dengue epidemic in three decades, with more than 580,000 cases and 419 deaths recorded. The absence of a prevention campaign and vaccination plan at the national level had sparked strong criticism, which was reinforced by a shortage of mosquito repellent at the height of the epidemic.
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