"A plan to release a horde of 750 million genetically modified mosquitoes in Florida and Texas is a step closer to fruition after a state regulator approved the idea, over the objections of many environmentalists.

Oxitec, a British biotechnology company, has targeted the US as a test site for a special version of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The mosquitoes contain a protein that, when passed down to female offspring, will lessen their chances of survival and, it is hoped, prevent them from biting people and spreading diseases such as dengue fever and Zika.

On Tuesday, it was announced that the Florida department of agriculture and consumer services has given the green light to a plan to release the millions of mosquitoes in the Florida Keys, the string of picturesque islands that extend from the southern tip of the state, beginning this summer."

Oliver Milman reports for the Guardian June 17, 2020. [2]