Proteins called rhodopsins via optogenetics can control the activity of neurons in mice.
The protein AEG12 is able to strongly inhibit flaviviruses, a family of viruses consisting of known highly contagious and potentially deadly diseases like Zika, West Nile, dengue and yellow fever.
The mosquitoes were found in the Beit Aryeh and Peduel settlements in the West Bank and in Beit HaArava and Kalya near the northern Dead Sea.
The ministry called for citizens to take precautions to avoid contracting the virus, especially considering the strain that the coronavirus pandemic has placed on Israel’s healthcare system.
Malaria affects more than 200 million people worldwide and killed an estimated 405,000 people in 2018 - most of them babies and children under five years old.
The West Nile virus has the potential to cause an infection in the brain, which can result in severe outcomes such as paralysis or fatality.
The mosquitoes released will all be male, which do not bite people and as such pose no risk to humans.
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