Brazil’s rainy season fuels dengue crisis as scientists turn to new tactics

Brazil is grappling with the start of dengue season, a time when heavy rains create breeding grounds for Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which spread deadly diseases such as dengue, Zika, and chikungunya.
Last year, the country faced a record-breaking dengue epidemic, with over six million cases and more than six thousand deaths.
This year, even before the onset of the rainy season, another 1.5 million infections and over a thousand fatalities have been reported.
Scientists warn that climate change and insecticide resistance are exacerbating the crisis, extending the mosquitoes' season and threatening public health.
In response, Brazil is deploying an innovative solution: mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria, which prevents the spread of dengue.
A newly opened biofactory in Campinas, capable of producing 190 million of these mosquitoes per week, promises to shield 100 million people annually.
Additionally, portable biofactories in the form of simple cardboard boxes allow these modified mosquitoes to be released in remote areas.
With outbreaks worsening due to climate change, Brazil is turning to nature’s own defences to curb this growing threat.

Al Jazeera’s Monica Yanakiew reports from Campinas in southern Brazil.

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