ArticleThe Lancet. Infectious diseases2022
Estimating the effect of the wMel release programme on the incidence of dengue and chikungunya in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: a spatiotemporal modelling study.
Article in The Lancet. Infectious diseases, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 65 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
65 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Wolbachia-carrying Aedes mosquitoes for preventing dengue infection.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Dengue virus infection.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2026Review
- Comparison of Oviposition and Adult Trapping to Monitor wMel Introgression for Wolbachia-Based Vector Control.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2026Article
- Research Trends and Collaborative Patterns inInternational journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Article
- Strategies forOne health (Amsterdam, Netherlands) · 2026Review
- Research advances in chikungunya virus: Epidemiology, pathogenesis, and control.One health (Amsterdam, Netherlands) · 2026Review
- The cost-effectiveness of Wolbachia-based biocontrol interventions for dengue: A scoping review of the available evidence.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Interactions between mosquito genetic background and Wolbachia strain affect dengue virus blocking and fitness in South American populations of Aedes aegypti.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Wolbachia wMel and wAlbB strains differentially impact the vector competence of Aedes aegypti with a Brazilian genetic background for DENV-1 virus.Parasites & vectors · 2026Article
- The L1014F Kdr mutation is associated with a higher prevalence and load of the Plasmodium-blocking symbiont Microsporidia MB In Anopheles Gambiae s.l. In Benin.BMC microbiology · 2026Article
- The impact of large-scale release ofLancet regional health. Americas · 2026Article
- Managing and controlling diseases transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes: a review on best practices.Tropical medicine and health · 2026Review
- Horizons of the Future: Preparedness and Response.Current topics in microbiology and immunology · 2026Review
- Wolbachia introgression in Rio de Janeiro remains at sub-optimal levels 30 months after its decline: challenges in the sustainability of wMel interventions for dengue control.Memorias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz · 2026Article
- Analysis of a household-scale model for the invasion of Wolbachia into a resident mosquito population.Journal of mathematical biology · 2025Article
- Dengue and severe dengue.Clinical microbiology reviews · 2025Review
- Improving Wolbachia-based control programs in urban settings: Insights from spatial modeling.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Midgut microbiota diversity and interactions shift when field Aedes aegypti mosquitoes carry the wMel strain of Wolbachia pipientis.Communications biology · 2025Article
- Heterogeneity in inhibition of genetically diverse dengue virus strains bybioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Hologenomic structure of bacterial and fungal community composition in the West Nile virus vectorbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
5 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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8 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIntrogression of genetic material from species of the insect bacteria Wolbachia into populations of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes has been shown in randomised and non-randomised trials to reduce the incidence of dengue; however, evidence for the real-world effectiveness of large-scale deployments of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes for arboviral disease control in endemic settings is still scarce. A large Wolbachia (wMel strain) release programme was implemented in 2017 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We aimed to assess the effect of this programme on the incidence of dengue and chikungunya in the city.
methods67 million wMel-infected mosquitoes were released across 28 489 locations over an area of 86·8 km
findingsOn average, 32% of mosquitoes collected from the release zones between 1 month and 29 months after the initial release tested positive for wMel. Reduced wMel introgression occurred in locations and seasonal periods in which cases of dengue and chikungunya were historically high, with a decrease to 25% of mosquitoes testing positive for wMel during months in which disease incidence was at its highest. Despite incomplete introgression, we found that the releases were associated with a 38% (95% CI 32-44) reduction in the incidence of dengue and a 10% (4-16) reduction in the incidence of chikungunya.
interpretationStable establishment of wMel in the geographically diverse, urban setting of Rio de Janeiro seems to be more complicated than has been observed elsewhere. However, even intermediate levels of wMel seem to reduce the incidence of disease caused by two arboviruses. These findings will help to guide future release programmes.
fundingBill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the European Research Council.
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