Application of wMelPop Wolbachia Strain to Crash Local Populations of Aedes aegypti

The Impact of Temperature and Body Size on Fundamental Flight Tone Variation in the Mosquito Vector Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae): Implications for Acoustic Lures

Aedes aegypti (L.) males use female flight tone as a means of mate localization. By playing the sound of a flying female, males can be attracted to a trap to monitor mosquito populations and the progress of transgenic male releases. However, the female flight tone used to attract males needs to be optimized to maximize trap effectiveness. The fundamental frequency of female flight tone could be influenced by both body size and ambient temperature. However, no analysis yet has considered both the effect of body size and temperature on female flight tone of Ae. aegypti. Here, we present results for both these factors by recording the sounds of free-flying and tethered females across multiple temperature environments and with females reared for small, medium, and large body sizes. We demonstrate that female fundamental frequency is highly dependent on the environmental temperature, increasing ∼8-13 Hz with each °C gain. Body size and whether a female was tethered or free-flying did not impact the relationship between frequency and temperature, although further analysis is warranted. Our study highlights the importance of understanding the relationship between flight tone and temperature, and will inform the design of male mosquito traps.

Zika, Chikungunya, and Other Emerging Vector-Borne Viral Diseases

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) have a long history of emerging to infect humans, but during recent decades, they have been spreading more widely and affecting larger populations. This is due to several factors, including increased air travel and uncontrolled mosquito vector populations. Emergence can involve simple spillover from enzootic (wildlife) cycles, as in the case of West Nile virus accompanying geographic expansion into the Americas; secondary amplification in domesticated animals, as seen with Japanese encephalitis, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, and Rift Valley fever viruses; and urbanization, in which humans become the amplification hosts and peridomestic mosquitoes, mainly Aedes aegypti, mediate human-to-human transmission. Dengue, yellow fever, chikungunya, and Zika viruses have undergone such urban emergence. We focus mainly on the latter two, which are recent arrivals in the Western Hemisphere. We also discuss a few other viruses with the potential to emerge through all of these mechanisms.

Life-shortening Wolbachia infection reduces population growth of Aedes aegypti

Wolbachia bacteria are being introduced into natural populations of vector mosquitoes, with the goal of reducing the transmission of human diseases such as Zika and dengue fever. The successful establishment of Wolbachia infection is largely dependent on the effects of Wolbachia infection to host fitness, but the effects of Wolbachia infection on the individual life-history traits of immature mosquitoes can vary. Here, the effects of life-shortening Wolbachia (wMelPop) on population growth of infected individuals were evaluated by measuring larval survival, developmental time and adult size of Aedes aegypti in intra- (infected or uninfected only) and inter-group (mixed with infected and uninfected) larval competition assays. At low larval density conditions, the population growth of wMelPop infected and uninfected individuals was similar. At high larval densities, wMelPop infected individuals had a significantly reduced population growth rate relative to uninfected individuals, regardless of competition type. We discuss the results in relation to the invasion of the wMelPop Wolbachia infection into naturally uninfected populations.

Advances in Vector Control Science: Rear-and-Release Strategies Show Promise… but Don't Forget the Basics

Both chikungunya and Zika viruses have recently swept from Africa across the Pacific to the Americas, causing major outbreaks of disease in humans. In the meantime, dengue epidemics continue throughout the tropics. Traditional vector control programs based on strategies from 1950s and 1960s have been relatively ineffective in combating recent epidemics. In response, new methods involving the rearing and releasing of large numbers of mosquitoes to eliminate or modify local Aedes populations are being developed, with several currently conducting field releases in high-risk countries. These advances, include the release of Wolbachia-infected Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, for either its virus-blocking capabilities, sterilization by cytoplasmic incompatibility, or both; the release of Aedes carrying dominant lethal genes, such as the OX513A strain of A. aegypti; and other emerging techniques, such as advancing gene-drive technologies, are summarized, as well as current stages of development and primary operational and regulatory hurdles. Although these technologies show great promise, none are ready for widespread rollout for cities of millions of people. Thus, efforts should be made to avoid methods such as space sprays that have failed and improve existing technologies to increase their efficacy.

Rapid Surveillance for Vector Presence (RSVP): Development of a novel system for detecting Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus

Background

The globally important Zika, dengue and chikungunya viruses are primarily transmitted by the invasive mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. In Australia, there is an increasing risk that these species may invade highly urbanized regions and trigger outbreaks. We describe the development of a Rapid Surveillance for Vector Presence (RSVP) system to expedite presence- absence surveys for both species.

Methodology/Principal findings

We developed a methodology that uses molecular assays to efficiently screen pooled ovitrap (egg trap) samples for traces of target species ribosomal RNA. Firstly, specific real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays were developed which detect a single Ae. aegypti or Ae. albopictus first instar larva in samples containing 4,999 and 999 non-target mosquitoes, respectively. ImageJ software was evaluated as an automated egg counting tool using ovitrap collections obtained from Brisbane, Australia. Qualitative assessment of ovistrips was required prior to automation because ImageJ did not differentiate between Aedes eggs and other objects or contaminants on 44.5% of ovistrips assessed, thus compromising the accuracy of egg counts. As a proof of concept, the RSVP was evaluated in Brisbane, Rockhampton and Goomeri, locations where Ae. aegypti is considered absent, present, and at the margin of its range, respectively. In Brisbane, Ae. aegypti was not detected in 25 pools formed from 477 ovitraps, comprising ≈ 54,300 eggs. In Rockhampton, Ae. aegypti was detected in 4/6 pools derived from 45 ovitraps, comprising ≈ 1,700 eggs. In Goomeri, Ae. aegypti was detected in 5/8 pools derived from 62 ovitraps, comprising ≈ 4,200 eggs.

Conclusions/Significance

RSVP can rapidly detect nucleic acids from low numbers of target species within large samples of endemic species aggregated from multiple ovitraps. This screening capability facilitates deployment of ovitrap configurations of varying spatial scales, from a single residential block to entire suburbs or towns. RSVP is a powerful tool for surveillance of invasive Aedes spp., validation of species eradication and quality assurance for vector control operations implemented during disease outbreaks.

Aedes (Stegomyia) vectors of dengue, Zika and chikungunya viruses utilize artificial and natural containers as larval habitats. Adults do not usually disperse far (< 500 m) from these larval habitats in urban and peri-urban environments. Highly heterogeneous distributions raise significant logistic challenges to conduct informative surveillance. Public health imperatives require contemporaneous vector mosquito presence-absence data for highly urbanized regions that are both vulnerable to invasions and have frequent exposure to viremic travellers. We developed a promising tool to expedite presence-absence surveillance of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus by integrating molecular diagnostics with ovitraps and automated egg quantification software. The high sensitivity of the molecular assays enabled samples from multiple ovitraps to be pooled and processed for each diagnostic test. This innovation resolves the considerable logistic constraints inherent in traditional ovitrap surveillance programs. Proof of concept was evaluated in field trials in Queensland geographies where Ae. aegypti is considered either absent, present or at the margin of its range (Brisbane, Rockhampton and Goomeri, respectively). Aedes aegypti was detected in Goomeri and Rockhampton and not detected in Brisbane. Further investigation is required to address the inaccuracy of automated egg counting software whenever contaminants are present. RSVP can accommodate varied ovitrap designs and deployment configurations, improves efficiency in laboratory and labor costs for high volumes of samples, and enables a rapid turnaround of results. The RSVP system can innovate surveillance programs for early-warning of invasion, eradication, and quality assurance for vector control in disease response contexts.

Disease and economic burdens of dengue

The burden of dengue is large and growing. More than half of the global population lives in areas with risk of dengue transmission. Uncertainty in burden estimates, however, challenges policy makers' ability to set priorities, allocate resources, and plan for interventions. In this report, the first in a Series on dengue, we explore the estimations of disease and economic burdens of dengue, and the major estimation challenges, limitations, and sources of uncertainty. We also reflect on opportunities to remedy these deficiencies. Point estimates of apparent dengue infections vary widely, although the confidence intervals of these estimates overlap. Cost estimates include different items, are mostly based on a single year of data, use different monetary references, are calculated from different perspectives, and are difficult to compare. Comprehensive estimates that decompose the cost by different stakeholders (as proposed in our framework), that consider the cost of epidemic years, and that account for productivity and tourism losses, are scarce. On the basis of these estimates, we propose the most comprehensive framework for estimating the economic burden of dengue in any region, differentiated by four very different domains of cost items and by three potential stakeholders who bear the costs. This framework can inform future estimations of the economic burden of dengue and generate demand for additional routine administrative data collection, or for systematic incorporation of additional questions in nationally representative surveys in dengue-endemic countries. Furthermore, scholars could use the framework to guide scenario simulations that consider ranges of possible values for cost items for which data are not yet available. Results would be valuable to policy makers and would also raise awareness among communities, potentially improving dengue control efforts.

Zika Virus: Transmission, Detection, Control, and Prevention

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne Flavivirus discovered in Uganda in the 1940s. To date, three major ZIKV outbreaks have been reported. ZIKV infections have known to be primarily asymptomatic while causing mild illness in a few cases. However, the recent emergence and spread of ZIKV in the Americas has resulted in the declaration of "Public Health Emergency of International Concern" due to the potential association between the infection and prenatal microcephaly or other brain anomalies. In Brazil, a 20-fold increase in prenatal microcephaly cases and 19% increase in Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) cases were reported in 2015, as compared to the preceding year. The probable deleterious effects of ZIKV infection prompt the urgent development of diagnostics and therapeutics. To this end, the existing evidences supporting the increasingly common prenatal microcephaly and GBS association and the current known ZIKV transmission dynamics, modes of detection (molecular and serology-based), and current control strategies are summarized in this review. This review also emphasizes the importance of understanding ZIKV transmission in order to design a sensitive yet cost and time-efficient detection technique. Development of an efficient detection technique would subsequently allow for better surveillance and control of ZIKV infection. Currently, limited literature is available on the pathogenesis of ZIKV, hence, focusing on the modes of ZIKV transmission could potentially contribute to the understanding of the disease spectrum and formulation of targeted treatment and control.

Incidence of Wolbachia in aquatic insects

Wolbachia is a genus of intracellular bacteria typically found within the reproductive systems of insects that manipulates those systems of their hosts. While current estimates of Wolbachia incidence suggest that it infects approximately half of all arthropod species, these estimates are based almost entirely on terrestrial insects. No systematic survey of Wolbachia in aquatic insects has been performed. To estimate Wolbachia incidence among aquatic insect species, we combined field‐collected samples from the Missouri River (251 samples from 58 species) with a global database from previously published surveys. The final database contained 5,598 samples of 2,687 total species (228 aquatic and 2,459 terrestrial). We estimate that 52% (95% CrIs: 44%–60%) of aquatic insect species carry Wolbachia, compared to 60% (58%–63%) of terrestrial insects. Among aquatic insects, infected orders included Odonata, Coleoptera, Trichoptera, Ephemeroptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, and Plecoptera. Incidence was highest within aquatic Diptera and Hemiptera (69%), Odonata (50%), and Coleoptera (53%), and was lowest within Ephemeroptera (13%). These results indicate that Wolbachia is common among aquatic insects, but incidence varies widely across orders and is especially uncertain in those orders with low sample sizes such as Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera.

Wolbachia Infections in Aedes aegypti Differ Markedly in Their Response to Cyclical Heat Stress

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria are currently being released for arbovirus suppression around the world. Their potential to invade populations and persist will depend on interactions with environmental conditions, particularly as larvae are often exposed to fluctuating and extreme temperatures in the field. We reared Ae. aegypti larvae infected with different types of Wolbachia (wMel, wAlbB and wMelPop-CLA) under diurnal cyclical temperatures. Rearing wMel and wMelPop-CLA-infected larvae at 26-37°C reduced the expression of cytoplasmic incompatibility, a reproductive manipulation induced by Wolbachia. We also observed a sharp reduction in the density of Wolbachia in adults. Furthermore, the wMel and wMelPop-CLA infections were not transmitted to the next generation when mosquitoes were exposed to 26-37°C across all life stages. In contrast, the wAlbB infection was maintained at a high density, exhibited complete cytoplasmic incompatibility, and was transmitted from mother to offspring with a high fidelity under this temperature cycle. These findings have implications for the potential success of Wolbachia interventions across different environments and highlight the importance of temperature control in rearing.

Near-Infrared Spectroscopy, a Rapid Method for Predicting the Age of Male and Female Wild-Type and Wolbachia Infected Aedes aegypti

Estimating the age distribution of mosquito populations is crucial for assessing their capacity to transmit disease and for evaluating the efficacy of available vector control programs. This study reports on the capacity of the near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technique to rapidly predict the ages of the principal dengue and Zika vector, Aedes aegypti. The age of wild-type males and females, and males and females infected with wMel and wMelPop strains of Wolbachia pipientis were characterized using this method. Calibrations were developed using spectra collected from their heads and thoraces using partial least squares (PLS) regression. A highly significant correlation was found between the true and predicted ages of mosquitoes. The coefficients of determination for wild-type females and males across all age groups were R2 = 0.84 and 0.78, respectively. The coefficients of determination for the age of wMel and wMelPop infected females were 0.71 and 0.80, respectively (P< 0.001 in both instances). The age of wild-type female Ae. aegypti could be identified as < or ≥ 8 days old with an accuracy of 91% (N = 501), whereas female Ae. aegypti infected with wMel and wMelPop were differentiated into the two age groups with an accuracy of 83% (N = 284) and 78% (N = 229), respectively. Our results also indicate NIRS can distinguish between young and old male wild-type, wMel and wMelPop infected Ae. aegypti with accuracies of 87% (N = 253), 83% (N = 277) and 78% (N = 234), respectively. We have demonstrated the potential of NIRS as a predictor of the age of female and male wild-type and Wolbachia infected Ae. aegypti mosquitoes under laboratory conditions. After field validation, the tool has the potential to offer a cheap and rapid alternative for surveillance of dengue and Zika vector control programs.

Female Adult Aedes albopictus Suppression by Wolbachia-Infected Male Mosquitoes

Dengue, chikungunya and zika viruses are pathogens with an increasing global impact. In the absence of an approved vaccine or therapy, their management relies on controlling the mosquito vectors. But traditional controls are inadequate, and the range of invasive species such as Aedes albopictus (Asian Tiger Mosquito) is expanding. Genetically modified mosquitoes are being tested, but their use has encountered regulatory barriers and public opposition in some countries. Wolbachia bacteria can cause a form of conditional sterility, which can provide an alternative to genetic modification or irradiation. It is unknown however, whether openly released, artificially infected male Ae. albopictus can competitively mate and sterilize females at a level adequate to suppress a field population. Also, the unintended establishment of Wolbachia at the introduction site could result from horizontal transmission or inadvertent female release. In 2014, an Experimental Use Permit from the United States Environmental Protection Agency approved a pilot field trial in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. Here, we present data showing localized reduction of both egg hatch and adult female numbers. The artificial Wolbachia type was not observed to establish in the field. The results are discussed in relation to the applied use of Wolbachia-infected males as a biopesticide to suppress field populations of Ae. albopictus.

The Eye of the Tiger, the Thrill of the Fight: Effective Larval and Adult Control Measures Against the Asian Tiger Mosquito, Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae), in North America

The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus (Skuse), is a highly invasive container-inhabiting species with a global distribution. This mosquito, similar to other Stegomyia species such as Aedes aegypti (L.), is highly adapted to urban and suburban areas, and commonly oviposits in artificial containers, which are ubiquitous in these peridomestic environments. The increase in speed and amount of international travel and commerce, coupled with global climate change, have aided in the resurgence and expansion of Stegomyia species into new areas of North America. In many parts of their range, both species are implicated as significant vectors of emerging and re-emerging arboviruses such as dengue, chikungunya, and now Zika. Although rapid and major advances have been made in the field of biology, ecology, genetics, taxonomy, and virology, relatively little has changed in the field of mosquito control in recent decades. This is particularly discouraging in regards to container-inhabiting mosquitoes, because traditional integrated mosquito management (IMM) approaches have not been effective against these species. Many mosquito control programs simply do not possess the man-power or necessary financial resources needed to suppress Ae. albopictus effectively. Therefore, control of mosquito larvae, which is the foundation of IMM approaches, is exceptionally difficult over large areas. This review paper addresses larval habitats, use of geographic information systems for habitat preference detection, door-to-door control efforts, source reduction, direct application of larvicides, biological control agents, area-wide low-volume application of larvicides, hot spot treatments, autodissemination stations, public education, adult traps, attractive-toxic sugar bait methods, lethal ovitraps, barrier-residual adulticides, hand-held ultra-low-volume adulticides, area-wide adulticides applied by ground or air, and genetic control methods. The review concludes with future recommendations for practitioners, researchers, private industry, and policy makers.

Rapid and Non-destructive Detection and Identification of Two Strains of Wolbachia in Aedes aegypti by Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

The release of Wolbachia infected mosquitoes is likely to form a key component of disease control strategies in the near future. We investigated the potential of using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to simultaneously detect and identify two strains of Wolbachia pipientis (wMelPop and wMel) in male and female laboratory-reared Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Our aim is to find faster, cheaper alternatives for monitoring those releases than the molecular diagnostic techniques that are currently in use. Our findings indicate that NIRS can differentiate females and males infected with wMelPop from uninfected wild type samples with an accuracy of 96% (N = 299) and 87.5% (N = 377), respectively. Similarly, females and males infected with wMel were differentiated from uninfected wild type samples with accuracies of 92% (N = 352) and 89% (N = 444). NIRS could differentiate wMelPop and wMel transinfected females with an accuracy of 96.6% (N = 442) and males with an accuracy of 84.5% (N = 443). This non-destructive technique is faster than the standard polymerase chain reaction diagnostic techniques. After the purchase of a NIRS spectrometer, the technique requires little sample processing and does not consume any reagents.

Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a technique that measures specific frequencies of light absorbed by C-H, O-H, S-H and N-H functional groups. Mosquito samples are grouped based upon absorption differences between their chemical properties. In this study, we used NIRS to differentiate 1) Aedes aegypti infected with either of the two strains of intracellular bacterium Wolbachia (wMel and wMelPop) from wild type Ae. aegypti and 2) Aedes aegypti infected with wMel from those infected with wMelPoP. NIRS facilitated the differentiation of wMel and wMelPop from wild type samples and samples infected with either of the Wolbachia infected strains with high prediction accuracies over their lifespan. Predictive models were derived from initial calibration data sets and validated against independent cohorts. Prediction accuracies were high (82–98%) regardless of the cohort mosquitoes were sampled from. The results show that NIRS may have real potential as an alternative method for monitoring Wolbachia incidence in mosquitoes. A rapid, simple and cost-effective surveillance tool suitable for resource-poor areas and large urban release programs would be of great utility for evaluating Wolbachia-based interventions. The models developed during this study require further validation using field collections.

Zika virus: History, emergence, biology, and prospects for control

Zika virus (ZIKV), a previously obscure flavivirus closely related to dengue, West Nile, Japanese encephalitis and yellow fever viruses, has emerged explosively since 2007 to cause a series of epidemics in Micronesia, the South Pacific, and most recently the Americas. After its putative evolution in sub-Saharan Africa, ZIKV spread in the distant past to Asia and has probably emerged on multiple occasions into urban transmission cycles involving Aedes (Stegomyia) spp. mosquitoes and human amplification hosts, accompanied by a relatively mild dengue-like illness. The unprecedented numbers of people infected during recent outbreaks in the South Pacific and the Americas may have resulted in enough ZIKV infections to notice relatively rare congenital microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndromes. Another hypothesis is that phenotypic changes in Asian lineage ZIKV strains led to these disease outcomes. Here, we review potential strategies to control the ongoing outbreak through vector-centric approaches as well as the prospects for the development of vaccines and therapeutics.

Costs of Three Wolbachia Infections on the Survival of Aedes aegypti Larvae under Starvation Conditions

The mosquito Aedes aegypti, the principal vector of dengue virus, has recently been infected experimentally with Wolbachia: intracellular bacteria that possess potential as dengue biological control agents. Wolbachia depend on their hosts for nutrients they are unable to synthesize themselves. Consequently, competition between Wolbachia and their host for resources could reduce host fitness under the competitive conditions commonly experienced by larvae of Ae. aegypti in the field, hampering the invasion of Wolbachia into natural mosquito populations. We assess the survival and development of Ae. aegypti larvae under starvation conditions when infected with each of three experimentally-generated Wolbachia strains: wMel, wMelPop and wAlbB, and compare their fitness to wild-type uninfected larvae. We find that all three Wolbachia infections reduce the survival of larvae relative to those that are uninfected, and the severity of the effect is concordant with previously characterized fitness costs to other life stages. We also investigate the ability of larvae to recover from extended food deprivation and find no effect of Wolbachia on this trait. Aedes aegypti larvae of all infection types were able to resume their development after one month of no food, pupate rapidly, emerge at a large size, and exhibit complete cytoplasmic incompatibility and maternal transmission. A lowered ability of Wolbachia-infected larvae to survive under starvation conditions will increase the threshold infection frequency required for Wolbachia to establish in highly competitive natural Ae. aegypti populations and will also reduce the speed of invasion. This study also provides insights into survival strategies of larvae when developing in stressful environments.

Fitness of wAlbB Wolbachia Infection in Aedes aegypti: Parameter Estimates in an Outcrossed Background and Potential for Population Invasion

Wolbachia endosymbionts are potentially useful tools for suppressing disease transmission by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes because Wolbachia can interfere with the transmission of dengue and other viruses as well as causing deleterious effects on their mosquito hosts. Most recent research has focused on the wMel infection, but other infections also influence viral transmission and may spread in natural populations. Here, we focus on the wAlbB infection in an Australian outbred background and show that this infection has many features that facilitate its invasion into natural populations including strong cytoplasmic incompatibility, a lack of effect on larval development, an equivalent mating success to uninfected males and perfect maternal transmission fidelity. On the other hand, the infection has deleterious effects when eggs are held in a dried state, falling between wMel and the more virulent wMelPop Wolbachia strains. The impact of this infection on lifespan also appears to be intermediate, consistent with the observation that this infection has a titer in adults between wMel and wMelPop. Population cage experiments indicate that the wAlbB infection establishes in cages when introduced at a frequency of 22%, suggesting that this strain could be successfully introduced into populations and subsequently persist and spread.

Application of wMelPop Wolbachia Strain to Crash Local Populations of Aedes aegypti

The endosymbiotic bacteria Wolbachia pipientis (wMel strain) has been successfully established in several populations of Aedes aegypti, the primary dengue vector. The virulent Wolbachia strain wMelPop is known to cause several pathological impacts (increased egg mortality, life shortening, etc.) reducing overall fitness in the mosquito Ae. aegypti. Increased egg mortality could substantially reduce egg banks in areas with a lengthy monsoonal dry season, and be employed to eliminate local populations. We tested this application under semi-field cage conditions. First, we determined that wMelPop infection significantly reduced the survival of desiccation-resistant eggs of the dengue vector Ae. aegypti, with shade and temperature having a significant impact; nearly all wMelPop-infected eggs failed to hatch after 6 and 10 weeks in summer and winter conditions, respectively. In laboratory selection experiments we found that egg desiccation resistance can be increased by selection, and that this effect of wMelPop infection is due to the nuclear background of the host rather than Wolbachia. We then conducted an invasion of wMelPop within a semi-field cage using sustained weekly releases of wMelPop infected mosquitoes, with fixation achieved after 9 weeks. The egg populations wMelPop infected and an uninfected control were then subjected to a simulated prolonged monsoonal dry season (2.5 months) before flooding to induce hatching. The wMelPop infected eggs suffered significantly greater mortality than the controls, with only 0.67% and 4.35% of respective infected and uninfected eggs held in 99% shade hatching after 80 days. These studies suggest that wMelPop could be used to locally eliminate populations of Ae. aegypti that are exposed to prolonged dry conditions, particularly if combined with vector control.

Dengue is a leading cause of morbidity in the tropics. As a commercial vaccine is not available, control or modification of the mosquito vectors is employed to prevent transmission. Strains of the endosymbiotic bacteria Wolbachia affect the survival and ability of the dengue vector Aedes aegypti to transmit dengue. The Wolbachia strain wMelPop over-replicates within Ae. aegypti, inducing strong dengue virus blocking and early mortality of both egg and adult mosquitoes. We investigated whether this life-shortening Wolbachia strain can be used to eliminate local populations of Ae. aegypti in a semi-field cage. Our results indicate that Ae. aegypti eggs infected with wMelPop died at a significantly higher rate than uninfected eggs, and were nearly eliminated during a simulated dry season of 2–3 months. This suggests that that releases of wMelPop could facilitate control and elimination of Ae. aegypti if used in concert with vector control.