Tag: Mosquito Research & Control Unit
Zika cases still confined to GT, meetings set
(CNS): Public health officials have said there are now 12 confirmed cases of locally acquired Zika virus in Cayman. Three more positive tests results were received this week for people with no relevant travel history, all of whom live in George Town. There will be a series of public meetings starting next week to address concerns, especially for pregnant women. Since […]
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 […]
MRCU on full scale Zika attack
(CNS): The Mosquito Research and Control Unit is carrying out a full-scale attack on the Aedes aegypti in an effort to keep the numbers of the disease-carrying mosquito down and contain the current Zika threat. Dr Bill Petrie, the unit’s director, said there had been an “unprecedented number of requests” for yard spraying, especially in […]
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 […]
GT resident first to acquire local case of Zika
(CNS): The first local transmission of Zika in the Cayman Islands has been confirmed in a patient in George Town. Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr Samuel Williams-Rodriguez said the man reported the onset of symptoms on 25 July and he visited a private physician on 26 July. He was referred to Cayman Islands Hospital, […]
20,000 GM mosquitoes released in WB
(CNS): The Mosquito Research and Control Unit wasted no time Thursday morning with the controversial release of genetically modified Aedes aegypti. The planned release was put on hold for two weeks by the court during a judicial review, but after the stay was lifted Tuesday, some 20,000 of the bio-engineered mosquitoes were loose in West […]
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 […]
Stay lifted paving way for GM mosquito release
(CNS): The Mosquito Research and Control Unit has been given the greenlight by the court to begin the controversial release of the genetically modified bio-engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes after Justice Ingrid Mangatal lifted the stay on the project. Kerrie Cox, the lawyer representing the local activists trying to halt the project until an independent risk […]
Judge rejects anti-GM mozzie application
(CNS): Justice Ingrid Mangatal has rejected the application by local activists to overturn a decision of the National Conservation Council regarding the controversial release of millions of genetically engineered mosquitoes in West Bay. However, this does not mean the bio-engineered bugs will be released in the Cayman Islands just yet. In the absence of her […]
GM mosquito release approval ‘flawed’ argues QC
(CNS): The decision by the National Conservation Council to grant the Mosquito Research and Control Unit a permit approving the release of millions of genetically modified mosquitoes as part of a pilot project in West Bay was flawed and should be quashed, a lawyer representing local activists argued Tuesday. Stephen Tromans QC told the court […]
