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With the first West Nile virus outbreak of the year recently emerging in New York City, the New York City Department of Sanitation is expanding mosquito quarantine efforts.

The New York City Department of Public Health will screen in the Upper Manhattan area (north of 59th Street in Manhattan) from 8:30 pm on the 26th to 6:00 am on the 27th, and in South Brooklyn (before). post) from 8:30pm on the 28th to 6:00am on the 29th. .

According to the City Health Bureau, there is still no cure for the West Nile virus, which is common between August and September, so the best response for the elderly and the elderly is to reduce skin transparency and spraying poisons when they go out so that they are not bitten by mosquitoes.

In this regard, in New York City, an average of 18 people are infected with West Nile virus each year, and 15% of them have fatal symptoms. Symptoms of infection include fever, headache, and neurological disorders, and in severe cases, brain damage can occur, leading to death.

At the same time, in Queens, quarantine work was carried out in the main mosquito breeding areas such as Alipond Park, Kissena Park, and College Point, following the southern area of ​​Queens on the 7th to the 9th.

Jihoon Lee Reporter >

Mosquitoes are known to locate attack targets by detecting carbon dioxide in their breath, body odor, and heat. In addition, research results have shown that mosquitoes use infrared (IR) rays emitted from body heat to locate attack targets.

Professor Craig Montel’s team at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) published an experiment in the scientific journal Nature on the 23rd, showing that female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes can absorb infrared rays emitted from human skin temperature (34 °C) found that they had identified a protein that detects infrared rays in the body of the mosquito.

“Mosquitoes may be small, but they cause more human deaths than any other animal,” said Dr. Nicolas DeBeaubien, co-first author of the study “It provides a new opportunity to control it,” he said.

The Aedes aegypti mosquito transmits viruses that cause dengue fever, yellow fever, and Zika to more than 100 million people each year, and the Gambian mosquito (Anopheles gambiae) transmits the malaria parasite, which killing more than 40,000 people every year.

Male mosquitoes are harmless, but female mosquitoes need animal blood to lay eggs. In more than 100 years of research, it has been revealed that mosquitoes find targets for attack by detecting carbon dioxide, body odor, and body temperature emitted by animals, including humans.

In this study, the research team placed female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in a cage, divided the area into an area with infrared rays equal to human skin temperature (°C) on one side, and an area without infrared rays on the other side, and it was seen. which direction did the mosquitoes search Other conditions, including human body odor and carbon dioxide, were the same.

As a result, it was found that the number of mosquitoes that came to areas with infrared rays 34 ° C to study was twice as much as those in areas without infrared rays.

In addition, it was found that mosquitoes were able to detect infrared rays from a distance of up to 70 cm. This means that in the case of heat, mosquitoes can detect infrared rays much further away, compared to within 10cm of the skin.

The research team also found that the heat-sensing nerve cells at the tip of the mosquito’s antennae contain a protein that detects infrared rays. Mosquitoes with the tips of their antennae removed could not sense infrared light, and mosquitoes with the gene for a temperature-sensitive protein (TRPA1) turned on could not. also go to sense infrared light.

The research team revealed that infrared rays with a wavelength of 9,300 nm generated from body temperature cannot activate the visible light protein (rhodopsin) which responds to wavelengths below 700 nm, but can activate the protein TRPA1 which located up to 70 cm away to activate. .

The research team hopes that this discovery could contribute to developing ways to control mosquito populations. Effectiveness can be increased by adding a device that emits infrared rays similar to those emitted by the skin to a mosquito trap.

The research team also explains why loose clothing is particularly good at preventing mosquito bites Not only does loose clothing prevent mosquitoes from biting the skin, but the space between the skin and clothing reduces infrared emissions, making it easier for mosquitoes to bite the skin. he found them.

Skin cancer is a formative cancer that is increasing rapidly as the elderly population increases. As life expectancy increases, the amount of ultraviolet rays accumulated throughout your life increases, and the ozone layer in the atmosphere becomes thinner. The number of skin cancer patients increased by 34% in five years from 23,605 in 2018 to 31,661 in 2022.

– What type of skin cancer is it?

It is mainly divided into malignant melanoma and non-malignant melanoma. Non-melanoma skin cancers include basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, which account for 70% of all skin cancers. Malignant melanoma is a skin cancer that occurs when melanocytes become malignant. Skin cancer is a fatal disease with a 5-year survival rate of approximately 60%.

– What is the cause of the disease?

Exposure to ultraviolet rays is the biggest cause. Ultraviolet B rays directly damage skin DNA and cause mutations in cells, causing skin cancer. In addition, as age progresses, melanocytes, which protect the skin from ultraviolet rays, and Langerhans cells, which are responsible for immune function, decrease, increasing the risk of the disease a development. Since it occurs on the soles of the feet and nails that are not related to UV exposure, it is assumed that there are other causes besides UV rays, such as strong stimulation or constant stress.

– Symptoms that make you suspect skin cancer.

Skin cancer can also feel pain if it is inflamed, but it rarely complains of pain or itchiness. Skin cancer lesions grow larger or change shape over time. As cancer cells multiply, ulcers form in the lesion and may not heal.

– The mole and the skin cancer products are similar.

Asymmetric moles and tumors are usually symmetrical in shape and have smooth edges. The colors are uniform and vibrant in one or two colors. There is no change in size, shape or color, and most of them are small, less than 6 mm.

On the other hand, malignant tumors are asymmetrical in shape and have irregular borders. They are often larger than 6 mm in size and come in a variety of colors. Size, shape and color may change over time.

– What is the treatment?

The main treatment for malignant tumors is surgical removal. Wide area resection and microscopic Mohs surgery. A wide resection is a surgical procedure that largely removes normal tissue around the tumor. As it is not known how far the cancer has spread, 0.5 to 5 cm of surrounding normal tissue is removed.

Microscopic Mohs surgery is a surgical procedure that removes the cancer completely while preserving as much of the surrounding normal skin as possible. First, the visible lesion is excised, and the presence of cancer cells is determined on the cut surface through a frozen section, and only the remaining cancer cells are removed.

Daeik Kwon, medical expert Reporter >

A Whitby Island resident is receiving treatment after being bitten by a rabid bat. This is the fourth case of a Washington state resident bitten by a rabid bat this year, authorities said.
Island County authorities said a Whitby resident was being treated and recovering after being bitten by a rabid bat on the 1st. Another resident also reported seeing a large bat outside his house that day.
The state Department of Health (DOH) warns that bats are the only mammals in Washington that transmit rabies to other animals and people, and that a bite from one of these bats can be a life threatening.
DOH emphasized that any area bitten or touched by a bat should be washed with soap and get medical attention immediately, and urged people not to touch or approach wild animals, including bats. In particular, he emphasized to children that if they see a bat, they must tell an adult and be careful not to touch the carcass. In addition, authorities said that pets such as dogs, cats and pheasants should not be vaccinated against rabies.
Anyone who sees a wild animal or its carcass can report it to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.