To reduce the transmission of Dengue, Chikungunya, and Zika, the State Government will launch the “Aedes Aegypti Wolbachia in Yucatán” project, which seeks to incorporate the use of new technologies to, naturally and sustainably, contribute to reducing the number of cases of vector-transmitted diseases.
When launching this strategy, the head of the SSY, Mauricio Sauri Vivas, reported that this project promoted by the state administration consists of the release of male Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes with Wolbachia, a safe bacteria found in a large number of insects, as a method to have greater control of these conditions and their transmission.
Before the Consul General of the United States of America in Mérida, Dorothy Ngutter, the state official stressed that since the beginning of the current administration headed by Mauricio Vila Dosal, health has been a pillar and in terms of prevention it is no exception.
This project arises from the sum of efforts between the Ministry of Health of Yucatán (SSY) with the Autonomous University of Yucatán (UADY), the Michigan State University (MSU) and the National Center for Preventive Programs and Disease Control (CENAPRECE).
In his speech, the Rector of the Autonomous University of Yucatán (UADY), Carlos Alberto Estrada Pinto, indicated that these actions reaffirm the commitment of the highest house of studies in the state with the institutions, so this project will mark a before and after in the life of Yucatán, since these diseases are found in this region of the country and with the quality of research they can be controlled.
For his part, the Deputy Director of the National Vector Program of the National Center for Preventive Programs (CENAPRECE), Fabián Correa Morales, pointed out that the implementation of this project marks a milestone for public health in vector control.
He said that with this project today we want to show everyone that we have safer and natural methods. For this reason, for more than 7 years there has been a rapprochement in the field of research with Michigan State University (MSU) because Mexico has always wanted to be at the forefront.
“This will be made possible by working hand in hand with the UADY, the State Health Secretariat and everyone knows that dengue in 2023 marked a critical moment not only in the country but for the region of the Americas, reporting on this panorama. the World Health Organizations (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organizations (PAHO),” he added.
He noted that the Federal Ministry of Health reiterates the commitment to continue working hand in hand with the SSY and participating institutions to scale this technology from Yucatán where it begins and extending it to other federal entities in the country.
Michigan State University (MSU) Researcher Zhiyong Xi said that it is an honor to be able to continue with this project and thanked the participating institutions for their willingness and wished the best of success for these activities that will help the state of Yucatán.
While the head of the Collaborative Unit of Entomological Bioassays and the Laboratory for the Biological Control of Aedes aegypti, Pablo Manrique Saide, highlighted that this day is an important step for the future in the control of dengue in Yucatan, since the coordination Among the participating institutions are science, politics, human resources and multisectoral work.
He explained that the implementation of this strategy with good mosquitoes in Yucatán is the spearhead of a national strategy for the control of Aedes aegypti in Mexico.
