Never before has a genetically modified insect been released into a U.S. neighborhood, but that could change very soon, according to Florida's Sun-Sentinel. Mosquitoes with genetically altered DNA might be released in the Florida Keys to help combat dengue and chikungunya.
"This is essentially using a mosquito as a drug to cure disease," said Michael Doyle, executive director of the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District. The mosquito release needs to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first.
Dengue and chikungunya aren't as scary to some people as the thought of being bitten by a GMO. There is even a petition on Change.org asking citizens to say "no" to the release of the mosquitoes. According to Sun-Sentinel, the petition has been signed by more than 130,000 people.
"I think the science is fine, they definitely can kill mosquitoes, but the GMO issue still sticks as something of a thorny issue for the general public," Phil Lounibos, who studies mosquito control at the Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, told Sun-Sentinel.
Climate change and globalization increases the chances of tropical diseases spreading and Key West is the southernmost U.S. city. No vaccines exist for dengue or chikungunya. Dengue is called "break-bone fever," and chikungunya - although rare in the U.S. - is reportedly so painful that it causes contortions, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
So, what is worse? Insecticides and the risk of disease or being bitten by a genetically modified mosquito? According to the Sun-Sentinel, Aedes aegypti (the insect whose females are the biters that spread diseases) are now resistant to four of the six insecticides used.
A British biotech firm, Oxitec, has developed a breeding method using genes from the herpes simplex virus, E. coli bacteria, coral and cabbage. The synthetic DNA kills mosquito larva. When the modified females produce males, those males are then released. The male Aedes aegypti does not bite, according to Sun-Sentinel. Plus, the modified males will reproduce with wild females and create disease resistant offspring.
Oxitec is ready to release the first swarm in the spring, but FDA spokesperson Theresa Eisenman said it's a no-go until the FDA has "thoroughly reviewed all the necessary information," according to Sun-Sentinel.
An experiment was done in 2012 in the Cayman Islands and 96 percent of the bugs were successfully suppressed. HNGN previously reported that a test was conducted in Brazil, where 90 percent of the mosquito population was controlled by the GMOs.
Could a few female mosquitoes escape from the lab? Oxitec claims that even if that were to happen, no genetically modified material could be leaked into the human bloodstream, according to Sun-Sentinel.
Some still have their doubts.
"I'm on their side, in that consequences are highly unlikely. But to say that there's no genetically modified DNA that might get into a human, that's kind of a gray matter," Lounibos told Sun-Sentinel.
Chris Creese, spokesperson for Oxitec said 70 million mosquitoes have already been released in other countries without any issues. "We are confident of the safety of our mosquito, as there's no mechanism for any adverse effect on human health. The proteins are non-toxic and non-allergenic," she said.
Oxitec held a public meeting, but residents are wary since there has not been an outbreak of dengue or chikungunya in Florida yet, according to Sun-Sentinel. Marilyn Smith, a Key West resident, asked "why are we being used as the experiment, the guinea pigs, just to see what happens?"
