GM Mosquito

A friend asked me about this article.  My response:

Well "anonymous" is famously not a great source (they get some things right and some things wrong) so that's always taken with a grain of salt for me. That being said, it is true that the company is looking to release the GM skeeters (males only). The idea behind them is sound in regards to reducing the skeeter population. Male mosquitoes don't bite and only feed on flower nectar. So they aren't harmful to humans. The male GM skeeters will mate with females. The female offspring will die, but the male offspring will grow and then mate and thus reducing the population. The EPA has cleared a new version (the company tried in 2016 and was denied). However, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District have to approve. The Texas releases aren’t scheduled until 2021. As with any initiative, there are valid concerns/questions (like will the decrease of the skeeter population mean less food source for other creatures). There are also some concerns that are way off base (like will they infect humans and cause infertility). Looking at the study they (anonymous) are citing proves that wild skeeters are strengthened: .https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-49660-6  

You'll see that upon peer review, the conclusions are being questioned: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-62398-w 

So this part at least is a clear indication of anonymous not looking into their own sources further and just relying on confirmation bias to report.