New Delhi: Some researchers have confirmed that Covid-19 cannot be transmitted to people by mosquitoes, the findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, provide the first experimental investigation on the capacity of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease, to infect and be transmitted by mosquitoes.
A team of scientists led by Stephen Higgs at Kansas State University (@kstatebio) demonstrate that even under extreme conditions, #SARS-CoV-2 virus is unable to replicate in mosquitoes and therefore cannot be transmitted to people via this route. https://t.co/ygLo8eeEyr pic.twitter.com/knsfzgInXs
— Immunology of Infectious Disease News (@infdisease_news) July 18, 2020
Researcher from Stephen Higgs from Kansas State University in the US, said the World Health Organisation (WHO) has also stated that mosquitoes cannot transmit the virus, our study is the first to provide conclusive data supporting the theory.
Three widely distributed species of mosquito Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus and Culex quinquefasciatus — representing the two most significant genera of arbovirus vectors that infect people, were tested and result calculated. Also, all three of the species are present in China, the country of origin of the novel coronavirus.
The study found that the virus is unable to replicate in three common and widely distributed species of mosquitoes and therefore cannot be transmitted to humans.
Research has been ongoing with other animal pathogens that can be transmitted from animals to people, including Rift Valley fever, Japanese encephalitis, African swine fever and classical swine fever.
Another researcher Peter Dorhout, said, “We have remarkable talent and capabilities working within our research and training facility at the university’s Biosecurity Research Institute (BRI).”
The findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, provide the first experimental investigation on the capacity of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease, to infect and be transmitted by mosquitoes.