Bright News

1 Billion Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Will Be Released in the U.S. The controversial move is designed to reduce the population size of disease-carrying mosquitoes.

If you thought the Florida Keys already had a mosquito problem, think again. Tens of thousands of genetically modified mosquitoes have recently been intentionally released throughout the region, and they are plans to release more — but they won’t bite (seriously).

The swarm aims to reduce the pesky mosquito problem, as well as preventing the spread of Zika in the U.S.

The problem: Mosquitoes are more than just buzzing nuisances. They carry diseases that can be very serious, like dengue, Zika, and yellow fever. The biggest offender is the Aedes aegypti. Only 4% of Florida’s mosquito population is this disease-carrying species. But they accounted for 70% of dengue fever cases in Key Largo last year, reports Gizmodo.

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