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Recently, the United States plans to release 1 billion mosquitoes into nature. This news has attracted the attention of many netizens and even aroused strong dissatisfaction among local people, who took to the streets to protest.

It is understood that the plan is actually a project that has been launched or is being planned, which aims to control the number of mosquitoes through genetic modification technology, especially those mosquito species that can spread diseases.

The main purpose is to reduce the number of wild mosquitoes by releasing genetically modified mosquitoes, especially those that carry and spread diseases, such as Aedes aegypti, which are important vectors of diseases such as dengue fever, Zika virus and yellow fever. The project was approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and implemented by the British biotechnology company Oxitec.

The genetically modified mosquitoes released are Aedes aegypti, named OX5034. These mosquitoes are all male, only eat nectar, and will not bite humans or other animals. They carry two special genes, one is a marker gene that emits fluorescence under a special red light for tracking and identification; the other is a "self-limiting" gene. When they mate with wild female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, they will pass this gene to their offspring, causing the female mosquitoes in the offspring to die before adulthood.

The project will first be piloted in the Florida Keys and may be expanded to other areas such as Texas in the future. The release plan is to release more than 1 billion genetically modified mosquitoes over 6,600 acres in Florida and Texas.

Although the project has certain innovation and potential, its effectiveness and safety still need further observation and evaluation.