Government Approves Bio-Engineered Mosquitoes to Combat Disease

eXcelisys would like to offer a huge “Hip, Hip, Hurrah!” to our client MosquitoMate for passing the EPA hurdle of approval. A few days ago, the U.S. government approved MosquitoMate’s ZAP Males® for use in 20 states.

eXcelisys Assists with Developing FileMaker Pro Mosquito Tracker

eXcelisys began working with the Lexington, Kentucky-based MosquitoMate ( http://mosquitomate.com/ ) in September. The biotech startup uses the FileMaker Platform to track mosquito “drops” and larvae collection traps. During the past two months, eXcelisys has helped MosquitoMate streamline the user interface for its iPad system using FileMaker Go, which is used in the field. eXcelisys has also been working to help automate data analysis.

MosquitoMate technology involves no genetic modifications. To create the ZAP Males®, MosquitoMate breeds male mosquitoes (who don’t bite) and infects them with a naturally occurring insect bacterium called Wolbachia. Each mosquito species carries its own strain of Wolbachia. When the lab-reared ZAP Males® mate with wild females who carry a different strain of Wolbachia, the eggs don’t hatch and the population dwindles.

ZAP Males® can be used to reduce local populations of the Asian Tiger Mosquito—a significant pest that spreads deadly diseases like the Zika virus and Dengue fever. MosquitoMate’s “weaponized” mosquitoes have been tested in California, Kentucky and New York, where they reduced the biting mosquito populations by more than 80 percent.

eXcelisys VP and Project Manager Doug West was thrilled to see his client in the national news. As MosquitoMate continues to work toward taking a bite out of the mosquito population, eXcelisys will be there providing a software development salve. “We’re happy to be partnering with them in preparing for their growth after this milestone. Congrats.”

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