Dengue fever wiped out across an entire city in Australia

were communities accepting of the technology, but they also became active participants, with residents and local school students growing and releasing their own Wolbachia mosquitoes.

' We believe our approach will be suitable for other cities, with appropriate local adaptation, and provides a framework for scaling-up our deployment, globally.'

The researchers add, however, other countries that are testing the modified mosquito roll out have higher rates of dengue than Australia and therefore the scheme may not work as effectively.

Despite their concerns, the scientists add results appear positive so far, the New Scientist reported. Dengue fever may be spread via sex This comes after research released last May suggested dengue fever may be passed on through sex.

Scientists discovered the dengue virus in the semen of a man more than a month after he fell ill while travelling in Thailand.

The virus lingering in the man's semen led researchers to believe the condition could be passed on during sex even after the other person has recovered.

The unnamed Italian man, who was in his 50s, was diagnosed with dengue fever last January. He was otherwise healthy but suffered from joint pain, fatigue and nausea.

The man was admitted to the National Institute for Infectious Diseases in Rome after feeling ill for nine days.

He recovered, with traces of the virus disappearing from his blood and urine after 23 days, however, the pathogen was still present in his semen after 37 days. All traces had disappeared by day 55.