r/technology • u/lurker_bee • 23h ago

Biotechnology Burkina Faso says no to Bill Gates’ plan of creating modified species of mosquitoes

https://africa.businessinsider.com/local/lifestyle/burkina-faso-says-no-to-bill-gates-plan-of-creating-modified-species-of-mosquitoes/xyk7xm8
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u/Zephyr256k 20h ago

There's no actual data there, it's all just puff about what the project is and who's working with them.
Doesn't even link to any real data.

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u/jofra6 16h ago

I personally know people working on Bill Gates' project in West Africa, a malaria vaccine is actually in development. Yes, malaria is a parasite, but somehow it's in the works.

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u/Logical-Breakfast966 15h ago

I’m guessing mRNA? It really is refining what a vaccine can be. Too bad all the research funding got cut in the us

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u/jofra6 15h ago

Yeah, I don't know the specifics, but I understand that it's mostly/completely being funded by the Gates foundation... I imagine at one point the WHO/CDC was involved, but this was largely privately funded as I understood it.

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u/Zephyr256k 15h ago

No, RTS,S is a recombinant (not mRNA) vaccine.
It was developed primarily by GlaxoSmithKline in cooperation with Walter Reed and PATH.
Gates foundation has provided major support for the final phases of trials and distribution, but most of the research and development was done long before they ever got involved.

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u/jofra6 15h ago

My understanding is limited, I knew the person working on the project in passing. Thanks for the correction!

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u/skolioban 13h ago

Surprisingly, there's a candidate for malaria relief, which is.... ivermectin. Yes, the horse paste dewormer idiots had been praising as a miracle drug. There are actual trials going on right now.

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u/organicversion08 11h ago

Not surprising, it's an antiparasitic drug.

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u/Expert-Diver7144 20h ago

Yeah but African leader didn’t accept something the west gave to them so obviously bad