The plant will only come into operation in 2025; The Ministry of Health plans to inaugurate two more facilities like this one, in Ceará and Paraná
Minas Gerais inaugurated on Monday 29th a biofactory of modified mosquitoes, characterized by the transport of bacteria Wolbachia (You Lubiti), which is especially capable of blocking the transmission of arboviruses from vectors to humans dengue. Production, however, is expected to begin only in 2025.
The resources for the construction of the building in Belo Horizonte come from the agreement to repair the damage caused by the collapse of the mining company’s dam OKIn Brumadinho, in January 2019. The tragedy cost the lives of 272 people. Therefore, in the first phase of the new project, mosquitoes Aedes aegizi with the bacteria will be released in the city of Brumadinho and in 21 other municipalities in the Paraopeba river basin.
According to the Ministry of Health, Vale will also pay for the assembly of the equipment and the cost of operations for five years. The construction of the building required an investment of approximately R$20 million, and the operational phase involves another R$57 million, according to the government of Minas Gerais.
The idea is that, in the future, the factory will be able to satisfy the demand for Wolbitos in all municipalities of Minas Gerais. “The factory will definitely reach a capacity of 60 million mosquitoes per month. Over time, here in Minas we will have much better numbers regarding dengue fever,” said Governor Romeu Zema (Novo). This year, the state has already recorded more than 1.3 million probable cases and confirmed 324 deaths from the disease. “It is a factory that will revolutionize the future of Minas Gerais in the medium and long term.”
As demonstrated by EstadaoLate last year, in cities where the method was used, researchers achieved reductions of up to 90% in dengue incidence. They have also had positive results for other mosquito-caused diseases, such as Zika and Chikungunya.
In Brazil, the Australian method has been carried out since 2014 by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), with funding from the Ministry of Health in collaboration with local governments. Until last year, the World Mosquito Program (WPM), holder of the patent for the methodology, used, on a temporary basis, the Fiocruz building, in Rio, and in a space made available by the city of Belo Horizonte to produce the Wolbitos.
During the inauguration, the secretary of Health and Environmental Surveillance of the Ministry of Health, Ethel Maciel, stated that “this is the first biofactory other than the one in Rio de Janeiro”, but the department intends to expand to other states. According to her, there are plans to build similar facilities in Paraná and Ceará.
In February, Ethel informed the Estadao that the department had purchased all of Fiocruz’s mosquito production for this year. With the R$ 30 million invested, the Wolbachia method has reached six new cities: Natal (RN), Uberlândia (MG), Presidente Prudente (SP), Londrina (PR), Foz do Iguaçu (PR) and Joinville (SC) . It was previously present in five others: Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Niterói (RJ), Campo Grande (MS), Belo Horizonte (MG) and Petrolina (PE).
The method
Aedes a Egypti is the scientific name of the mosquito that acts as a vector not only for dengue, but also for chikungunya and zika, which are part of a group of diseases called arboviruses. The mosquito, known for its white stripes, is considered domestic and has preferably diurnal habits. Only the female bites humans and contracts the virus that causes these diseases only when she feeds on the blood of someone infected.
Renowned scientist Scott O’Neill, CEO of WPM, began his studies with Wolbachia years ago. The interest began after an American group discovered that so-called fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) survived half the time they carried this bacterium in their bodies.
Wolbachia is an obligate intracellular bacterium (i.e. it does not survive outside the host) and is found in half of the existing insect species, but not in Aedes a Egypti. There is no evidence that it is a pathogen (causes disease) in humans or any vertebrates.
The first Wolbachia strain tested succeeded in reducing the lifespan of Aedes, but, due to some problems, it failed to establish itself in a mosquito population. Therefore, they tested another strain, also of the fruit fly. The discovery was surprising: it blocked the virus.
When the bacterium is in its cells, the mosquito has a significantly reduced chance of contracting an arbovirus. And, when this happens, the virus has a reduced ability to replicate and spread, i.e. it becomes a less competent vector.
To introduce the bacterium into Aedes a Egypti, scientists use microscopic needles to first take it from the fruit fly. Then they insert it into young mosquito eggs. When they break, a colony of Aedes a Egypti is formed with Wolbachia, inherited through subsequent generations.
Over time, Wolbachia manages to gain a foothold within the mosquito population and becomes part of the species’ genes, due to something called cytoplasmic incompatibility. It “manipulates” the mosquito’s reproductive capacity so that when a Wolbachia-infected male mates with a wild-type female, the eggs are not viable and will not hatch. Now, if the females with the bacteria mate with any male, all the eggs will carry Wolbachia and hatch.
With urbanization without adequate water and sewage networks, climate change and ineffective control measures, dengue fever is becoming an increasingly latent problem in Brazil and around the world. For experts, only combined “disruptive” innovations will be able to change the course of this story: this includes controlling vector transmission, offering a vaccine and developing treatments against the disease. This is because they evaluate that the classic measures of vector control, insecticides and elimination of mosquito outbreaks, although important, are not very effective.
The Wolbachia method stands out for being long-lasting, natural (there is no genetic alteration) and has a promising cost-benefit ratio. But there are challenges ahead, such as understanding why mosquitoes carrying this bacterium have difficulty establishing themselves in certain places and finding ways to scale production.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
