Can biotech beat mosquito-borne diseases?

Biological control company Oxitec recently launched Sparks, a new platform designed to rapidly scale Wolbachia replacement technology to take on dengue fever.

Backed by a multi-million-dollar investment from the Gates Foundation, Sparks adds to Oxitec’s Aedes aegypti technology, called Friendly, which is taking on dengue fever in Brazil. 

With mosquito-borne diseases on the rise, Oxitec’s Friendly mosquitoes are designed to suppress populations of disease-spreading mosquitoes and, in turn, reduce biting and the threat of disease transmission. Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes are designed to spread Wolbachia bacteria into the local mosquito population to limit the ability of the remaining infected mosquito population to transmit dengue. 

The platforms are designed for specific settings and intervention types, and provide options for governments and communities seeking suppression, replacement or hybrid approaches using both.

Our guest on the podcast this week is the CEO of Oxitec, Grey Frandsen.

00:56-02:12: About Oxitec
02:12-05:54: The state of mosquito-borne diseases
05:54-07:09: The effect of climate change
07:09-08:29: Moving into more developed countries
08:29-10:27: Wolbachia replacement technology
10:27-12:53: The Sparks program
12:53-13:46: Other companies’ approaches
13:46-15:00: World Mosquito Program
15:00-15:30: Establishing timelines
15:30-17:20: The effect on the environment
17:20-18:54: Could adaptation render the technology useless?
18:54-20:52: Are the Sparks and Friendly programs being used together?
20:52-21:57: Do the technologies work differently on different species?
21:57-26:28: How to determine rollout conditions
26:28-27:19: Are repeat interventions needed?
27:19-30:32: Are there limitations based on cost or politics?
30:32-33:11: Are the technologies applicable to other problems?
33:11-35:08: Is there anything else in Oxitec’s pipeline?

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