The world's largest mosquito factory has been built in Paraná, a state in southern Brazil, capable of producing 100 million mosquito eggs per week. The goal is to curb mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever through biological control. The factory breeds Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that carry the Wolbachia, which prevents viruses such as dengue and Zika from replicating inside the mosquitoes. These infected mosquitoes also have a reproductive advantage. Once released, they mate with wild mosquitoes, passing bacteria to their offspring and gradually reducing the risk of virus transmission.

Brazil is a hotspot for mosquito-borne diseases. In 2024, there were more than 6.48 million cases of dengue fever and 5,972 related deaths, both of which broke the records in the past 40 years. The incidence rate reached 3,193.5 cases per 100,000 residents, with most infections occurring in women aged 20 to 49. Brazil began studying this approach in 2012 and conducted a pilot release in 2014, hoping the new factory would help reduce future cases.

A similar mosquito defense strategy is being used in Xiashi Village, Baiyun District, Guangzhou, China. A team led by Xi Zhiyong releases male Aedes albopictus mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia, which are key vectors for arboviruses such as the dengue virus. These "sterile males" mate with wild females, but their eggs fail to hatch, reducing mosquito populations. Monitoring data showed that the control rate of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes in the village reached 98% at its highest and consistently remains above 90% under normal conditions. In 2018, the project drew attention from experts from many countries, including the United States, India, and Thailand.

全球最大的蚊子工厂在巴西建成，广东也有一群“专业放蚊子”的人

全球最大蚊子工厂在巴西巴拉那州建成，每周可产1亿枚蚊卵，旨在通过生物防治遏制登革热等蚊媒疾病。该工厂生产携带沃尔巴克氏菌的埃及伊蚊，这种细菌能阻止登革热、寨卡病毒等在蚊体内繁殖，且带菌蚊有繁殖优势。释放后与野生蚊交配，可使后代带菌，逐步降低病毒传播风险。

巴西是蚊媒疾病重灾区，2024年登革热病例达648万余例，死亡5972人，均创40年新高，发病率为每10万居民3193.5例，感染者以20-49岁女性为主。巴西自2012年研究此方法，2014年试点释放，希望新工厂能减少病例。

中国广州白云区峡石村也在采用类似的“以蚊治蚊”策略。奚志勇团队释放感染沃尔巴克氏体的雄性白纹伊蚊（花斑蚊，登革热传播元凶），这些“绝育雄蚊”与野生雌蚊交配后，雌蚊卵无法孵化，从而减少蚊群数量。监测显示，该村白纹伊蚊控制率最高达98%，常态化超90%。2018年，该项目吸引了美国、印度、泰国等多国专家调研。

（羊城晚报•羊城派综合上游新闻、中国新闻网、央视网、广州日报、广州广播电视台）

翻译 | 盛嘉
审校 | 林佳岱