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. 2021 May 18;12(5):469.
doi: 10.3390/insects12050469.

Sterile Insect Technique: Successful Suppression of an Aedes aegypti Field Population in Cuba

René Gato  1 , Zulema Menéndez  1 , Enrique Prieto  2 , Rafael Argilés  3 , Misladys Rodríguez  1 , Waldemar Baldoquín  1 , Yisel Hernández  1 , Dennis Pérez  1 , Jorge Anaya  1 , Ilario Fuentes  1 , Claudia Lorenzo  1 , Keren González  1 , Yudaisi Campo  1 , Jérémy Bouyer  3
Affiliations

Sterile Insect Technique: Successful Suppression of an Aedes aegypti Field Population in Cuba

René Gato et al. Insects. .

Abstract

Dengue virus infections are a serious public health problem worldwide. Aedes aegypti is the primary vector of dengue in Cuba. As there is no vaccine or specific treatment, the control efforts are directed to the reduction of mosquito populations. The indiscriminate use of insecticides can lead to adverse effects on ecosystems, including human health. The sterile insect technique is a species-specific and environment-friendly method of insect population control based on the release of large numbers of sterile insects, ideally males only. The success of this technique for the sustainable management of agricultural pests has encouraged its evaluation for the population suppression of mosquito vector species. Here, we describe an open field trial to evaluate the effect of the release of irradiated male Ae. aegypti on a wild population. The pilot trial was carried out in a suburb of Havana and compared the mosquito population density before and after the intervention, in both untreated control and release areas. The wild population was monitored by an ovitrap network, recording frequency and density of eggs as well as their hatch rate. A significant amount of sterility was induced in the field population of the release area, as compared with the untreated control area. The ovitrap index and the mean number of eggs/trap declined dramatically after 12 and 5 weeks of releases, respectively. For the last 3 weeks, no eggs were collected in the treatment area, clearly indicating a significant suppression of the wild target population. We conclude that the sterile males released competed successfully and induced enough sterility to suppress the local Ae. aegypti population.

Keywords: autocidal control; gamma radiation sterilization; irradiation; vector control.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Satellite images showing the study sites. (A) Location southwest of Havana city. (B) Details from control (Arroyo Arenas) and the sterile male release (El Cano) sites; yellow dots indicate the ovitrap location. Image via Google Earth (21 January 2021).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Ovitrap index of Aedes aegypti (solid lines, left Y axis) between epidemiological weeks 8 and 39, 2020, in the release (El Cano) and untreated control (Arroyo Arenas) areas, and the linear trend (dashed lines). The gray bars indicate the number of sterile males released (weeks 15–35) in El Cano (right Y axis).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Weekly mean induced egg sterility (%) in the release site El Cano between epidemiological weeks 18 and 39, 2020.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Aedes aegypti mean number of eggs/trap in the release (El Cano) and untreated control (Arroyo Arenas) areas between epidemiological weeks 8 and 39, 2020 (left Y axis). The gray bars indicate the number of sterile males released (weeks 15–35) in El Cano (right Y axis).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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