Tag: Aedes aegypti
US non-profit backs local anti-GM mosquito campaign
(CNS): As the Mosquito Research and Control Unit begins talks about expanding the release of bio-engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes across Grand Cayman, given the emerging success of the controlled project in West Bay, those opposed to the use of GM bugs to control the invasive pests have launched a new campaign. CNS has confirmed that […]
GM project cuts mozzies by over 80%
(CNS): There has been a dramatic fall in the number of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in West Bay, where genetically modified bugs have been released in a pilot project to get as near as possible to eradicating the disease-spreading pest. Over the last six months the MRCU, in partnership with a private UK bio-technology firm, has […]
NGOs query GM mosquito success risk
(CNS) UPDATED 5 Oct, with Oxitec comment: Admissions by Oxitec, the UK company partnering with the Mosquito Research and Control Unit here in Cayman, that the space created by the successful eradication of the Aedes aegypti through the use of its genetically modified insects could pave the way for a second disease-carrying species has some […]
Pregnant woman infected by Zika in GT
(CNS): A pregnant woman who lives in the Swamp area of George Town has been infected with the Zika virus, public health officials said. The first confirmed case of a pregnant woman contracting the mosquito-transmitted virus was revealed at a public information meeting in the capital Tuesday evening, when Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr Samuel […]
GM mosquito offspring begin to appear in field test
(CNS): The release of hundreds of thousands of genetically modified male mosquitoes is beginning to make its mark on the population of the Aedes aegypti species in the district of West Bay, officials managing the project said after the genetic markers began showing up in insect larvae. Dr Renaud Lacroix, the manager of the Oxitec […]
Two more cases of Zika reported in capital
(CNS): Public health officials have confirmed that they have received two more positive Zika virus tests on blood taken from patients in George Town with no travel history. Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr Samuel Williams-Rodriguez said that since Wednesday 17 August, ten additional results have come in from the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), with two being positive. There are […]
Third Zika case transmitted in George Town
(CNS): A George Town woman has become the third patient to test positive for Zika who does not have a travel history to a country where there has been an outbreak of the virus. Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr Samuel Williams-Rodriguez said that several more patients have been tested for the virus and another […]
GM mosquito survey claims broad support
(CNS): The results of an island-wide public opinion survey conducted on behalf of UK-based bio-tech firm, Oxitec, last month found that 69% of people who knew about the project to release genetically modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were in favour. Almost three weeks after Oxitec scientists and the Mosquito Research and Control Unit began the controversial […]
DoT braces for impact of CDC warning
(CNS): Following a travel alert issued for the Cayman Islands by the Centre of Disease Control in Atlanta, after the jurisdiction confirmed two cases of local Zika transmission, the Department of Tourism (DoT) is braced for the potential impact on the local tourism industry. In a short statement released Friday, the department said its global […]
Premier takes aim at anti-GM activists
(CNS): The Cayman Islands premier has called on the local activists, led by Dwene Ebanks, who challenged the government’s decision to allow the Mosquito Research and Control Unit to release bio-engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to reveal who backed the attempts to stall the project. Taking aim at those involved, Alden McLaughlin said many of those […]
Judge calls for ‘rigorous monitoring’ of GM mosquito release
(CNS): Justice Ingrid Mangatal called on the local authorities to ensure ongoing “rigorous monitoring and independent evaluation” of the genetically modified mosquito project as well as “earnest” public outreach after she cleared the way Tuesday for the release of millions of bio-engineered bugs in West Bay. In the written ruling, which was released yesterday, the […]
