Can the novel coronavirus be transmitted from mosquitoes to humans? The question had been hounding millions worldwide for the past six months. But a recent study has confirmed that mosquitoes cannot transmit SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, to humans.

The new study by Kansas State University of the U.S. was published in the Scientific Report journal. It offers the first conclusive experimental investigation, confirming SARS-CoV-2 can not be transmitted by mosquitoes, a theory which was previously supported by the World Health Organization (WHO). 

"While the World Health Organization (WHO) has definitively stated that mosquitoes cannot transmit the virus, our study is the first to provide conclusive data supporting the theory," study researcher Stephen Higgs said.

In a bid to seek scientific evidence, the research team tested the ability of SARS-CoV-2 to infect and replicate in three common and widely distributed species of mosquitoes – Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus and Culex quinquefasciatus, through intrapleural inoculation of the virus.

The three mosquito species represent the two most significant genera of arbovirus vectors that infect humans.

The study results showed that the COVID-19 virus is unable to replicate in three common and widely distributed species of mosquitoes and therefore cannot be transmitted to humans.

"We have demonstrated that even under extreme conditions, SARS-CoV-2 virus is unable to replicate in these mosquitoes and therefore can not be transmitted to humans even in the unlikely event that a mosquito fed upon a viremic host," the study authors wrote.

Apart from the new study, a previous scientific study by Italy's national health institute ISS also revealed that mosquitoes are unable to transmit coronavirus to humans.

(Cover photo via VCG)