Eliminate Dengue Program

The Eliminate Dengue Research Program (future link) is a not-for-profit international research collaboration which commenced in 2005. The objective of the project is investigate whether or not Wolbachia, a type of bacteria that occurs naturally in up to 60% of all insect species (but not the dengue-carrying mosquito Aedes aegypti), can be used as an effective strategy to disrupt the transmission of dengue fever between people in high-risk regions. Researchers believe that this approach will be very effective, especially in remote areas with limited medical care and infrastructure, especially as there is currently no vaccine for the virus.

<Image forthcoming when SteveQ speaks to Joan Hardy (sp.)> The Program consists of multiple teams in multiple countries around the world, each of which is actively working to breed Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes that can then be introduced into the local population. Through the use of storage provided by the RDSI project, researchers will be used to store an extensive collection of images and videos which are pivotal to achieving the Program’s goal of using multimedia to tell rich stories of the Eliminate Dengue method and the people who use it. These "stories" will provide guidance and support to researchers and research teams, and also provide them with the fundamental knowledge and tools that they will require in order to achieve the specific research goals tied to the particular region in which they operate. In effect, the storage provided by the RDSI project will be used to store a knowledgebase that will allow researchers to learn the skills that they need to pursue the Program's objectives and help to reduce the impact of Dengue Fever across the world.