Bill Gates Finances Eradication of Malaria with Mosquitoes that Kill Each Other

Only adult female mosquitos bite humans – so gene-edited male mosquitos are the perfect weapon to use against them

Microsoft founder Bill Gates is pouring $4million into a project to create killer mosquitoes that destroy each other through sex.
It’s a bold bid to curb malaria, a deadly disease typically transmitted through the bite of infected mosquitos.

On June 22, it was revealed that Gates is contributing $4 million to an initiative that will result in mosquitoes killing each other during sex. The funds will be directed from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation immediately.

Genetically-modified male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes at an Oxitec lab

This is part of Gates’ larger plan, in which he pledged to “eradicate malaria within a generation.”
Over 1 million people die from malaria every year. Most of it occurs in Sub-Saharan Africa and most of the victims are children. Up to 600 million people can suffer from malaria each year. The disease only spread through Anopheles mosquitoes.

Under the plan, genetically modified male mosquitoes will be released into the wild with a self-limiting gene. They will have sex with female mosquitoes, who are the only ones that bite and transmit malaria to humans. Since only the males will be genetically modified, this will be safe for humans.

During sex, the female mosquitoes will receive the self-limiting gene. This results in having their offspring die before reaching adulthood, which is when they start biting humans. That means that mosquitoes who are capable of spreading malaria will die.

June 25, 2018