Wolbachia mosquito

A project to fight dengue by releasing specially bred mosquitoes will be expanded to eight more public housing locations, covering an additional 1400 HDB ...

Dengue outbreak: Wolbachia mosquito project to be expanded to 1,400 more HDB blocks following 'promising' results Video Dengue outbreak: Wolbachia mosquito project to be expanded to 1,400 more HDB blocks following 'promising' results

The total coverage of the project is now 31 per cent of all HDB blocks in Singapore and more than 300000 households.

"Business-as-usual is not an option given the escalating threats of dengue. NEA will increase the number of male Wolbachia-Aedes mosquitoes produced per week from the current two million to five million by the end of 2022. The releases of male Wolbachia-Aedes mosquitoes will suppress the urban Aedes aegypti mosquito populations in these sites, and the data collected will also allow NEA to determine the impact of the technology on dengue cases and clusters. NEA said: "The positive outcome of the field studies at release sites has shown that continued releases of male Wolbachia-Aedes mosquitoes can successfully suppress the female urban Aedes aegypti mosquito population in Singapore." Tampines and Yishun, where there has been more than one year of releases, have previously seen up to 98 per cent reduction in the dengue mosquito population and up to 88 per cent reduction in dengue cases. The expansion of the releases of male Wolbachia-Aedes mosquitoes will complement existing community efforts to combat dengue.

SINGAPORE, June 15— The authorities will be expanding a flagship project to reduce the Aedes mosquito population to cover about a third of Housing and ...

“Though the number of dengue cases were significantly reduced within the release sites, they were not expected to significantly impact the dengue outbreak in 2020,” said NEA. “In 2022, we are once again in the midst of an outbreak: More than 14,000 cases have been reported to date, with an earlier-than-usual surge in dengue cases that began in March,” said Fu. NEA said it has previously observed a 98 per cent reduction in the dengue mosquito population and up to 88 per cent reduction of dengue cases at these two areas. “Similar observations have been made in the current dengue outbreak where these areas have 70 per cent less dengue cases compared to similar areas without Wolbachia,” the agency added. The expansion of the project is expected to suppress mosquito populations at the locations while providing data to determine the impact of the technology on dengue cases and clusters. NEA’s announcement comes as the number of dengue cases here continues to soar, with more than 14,000 dengue cases reported so far this year, more than double the total 5,258 dengue cases reported in 2021.

7 Our flagship programme, Project Wolbachia, involves releases of male Wolbachia-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to suppress the urban Aedes aegypti mosquito population in the community. Being the first to trial and implement this technology in a ...

In the current outbreak, these two towns have 70 per cent fewer dengue cases compared to similar areas without Wolbachia. Over in Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Batok, areas with at least a year of releases show dengue case reductions of up to 53 per cent. 14 I believe the last few days have provided opportunities for all of you to gain new insights, exchange ideas, build new connections and strengthen old ones. In our experience, the impact of Wolbachia technology is maximised when coupled with existing community efforts and vector control operations to suppress the presence of breeding habitats. Ultimately, individual and community responsibility and actions are still the most critical elements of dengue control. To complement NEA's mosquito production and release efforts, we have also partnered with Verily Life Sciences, which has contributed to gender-sorting and release of male Wolbachia-Aedes mosquitoes at the Tampines and Marine Parade study sites. In areas of Tampines and Yishun where releases have been ongoing for more than a year, we have seen up to 98 per cent suppression of the urban Aedes aegypti mosquito population, and up to 88 percent reduction in dengue cases. From clinical management and vaccine science to dengue epidemiology and vector control, the diversity and depth of expertise in this room is remarkable and indeed essential to combat this disease from all fronts. 7 Our flagship programme, Project Wolbachia, involves releases of male Wolbachia-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to suppress the urban Aedes aegypti mosquito population in the community. In 2022, we are once again in the midst of an outbreak: more than 14,000 cases have been reported to date, with an earlier-than-usual surge in dengue cases that began in March. Weekly cases could very well surpass the record of 1,800 seen in 2020 and may even exceed 2,000 soon, and we are just at the beginning of the traditional peak dengue season from June to October. As the dominant strain this year is the dengue virus serotype 3 (DENV-3), which has been rarely seen in Singapore, this means that population immunity among Singapore residents is low. Today, as we also commemorate World Dengue Day and ASEAN Dengue Day, your presence here, among this diverse community of clinicians, researchers, public health practitioners, and policymakers, is a testament to our common purpose of protecting our communities against the disease. Since 2016, we have thus invested significantly in research into innovations that could complement and enhance conventional control measures or at least mitigate the impact of outbreaks. This summit is an excellent platform for the international dengue community to come together to share scientific knowledge, strengthen partnerships, and advance dengue management strategies.