Scientists discover mechanism behind mosquito-borne-disease ‘blocker’ used to fight viruses

A new study from Indiana University may explain how a bacterium called Wolbachia prevents mosquitoes from transmitting deadly diseases such as dengue fever, West Nile virus and Zika. Published in the journal PLOS Pathogens, the study is one of the first to identify a specific biological mechanism that prevents mosquitoes infected with this bacterium from transmitting diseases to humans. It could also potentially open a path toward methods to block disease transmission without Wolbachia, an organism whose long-term effect on the environment is unknown. “There’s a real argument that some parts of the world are so strongly affected by these diseases that we need to try everything we can right away,” said Irene Garcia Newton, assistant professor in the IU Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Biology, who led the study. “But you’ve also got to remember that we’re releasing insects into the wild that could potentially spread all over...