Malaria -- Effective insecticide-repellent synergy against mosquito vectorsJuly 18, 2007The mosquitoes responsible for malaria transmission to humans belong to the Anopheles genus. One of the best known and most extensively studied is Anopheles gambiae, Africa's principal malaria vector. The protection recommended by the World Health Organization for people at risk from this devastating disease is the use of mosquito nets impregnated with pyrethroids, of low toxicity for mammals and highly active against mosquitoes. Unfortunately, excessive and inappropriate use of this family of insecticide, particularly by spraying, has induced a disturbing rise in the number of resistant individuals in the Anopheles populations. The mosquito nets treated with pyrethroids can therefore lose their effectiveness. It is therefore essential to devise new control strategies against these malaria vectors that are resistant to these insecticides. IRD researchers and their partners (1) obtained encouraging results by combining a non-pyrethroid insecticide, propoxur, and a repellent, N,N-diethyl toluamide (DEET). They based their investigations on previous work which had revealed a strong synergy between the two components. A combination of the two had proved to be much more effective than the straightforward addition of their respective properties. Mosquito nets soaked with this mixture had a lethal power and irritant effect that inhibited the mosquitoes from biting. Moreover, the mosquitoes are hit by a powerful paralysing action, known as the "knockdown" effect (3), on contact with the mixture. The mortality rates determined were satisfactory, in that they equalled those obtained by using deltamethrin, a commonly-used synthetic pyrethroid, highly effective against mosquitoes. The researchers tested two mixtures composed of a non-pyrethroid insecticide of the organophosphate family, combined with either a standard repellent, DEET, or with a new-generation synthetic repellent. Both of these mixtures show a strong synergy in the resulting lethal and paralysing effects on the mosquitoes. However, only the association between the insecticide and the standard repellent produced a synergistic effect that inhibited the mosquito from taking its blood feed. A synergistic effect was also observed with regard to the treatment's residual efficacy which is several months longer than that of either agent applied alone. The advantage of the synergistic property of these combinations is enhanced by the fact that it significantly reduced the necessary effective doses against the mosquitoes (about 6 times that of the insecticide applied alone), to attain an efficacy equivalent to that of deltamethrin. The nets treated with the two mixtures in the laboratory were subsequently tested in field trials, in the rice-growing area 40 km North of Bobo-Dioulasso, in Burkina Faso. This area has the specificity of harbouring two different forms of Anopheles gambiae. The first appears in May and June in the rice-fields. It shows no resistance to pyrethroids. The second emerges in September and October in puddles left by monsoon rains. These do show resistance to these insecticides. As expected, the usual pyrethroid-treated nets turned out to be effective only against non-resistant mosquitoes of the first population. Conversely, the nets pre-soaked with non-pyrethroid-repellent combinations proved excellent protection for the people of the local villages, whatever the population of mosquitoes present. Nevertheless, their residual efficacy (about 15 days) in real conditions did not match the researchers' expectations. The team consequently envisage working in conjunction with a company able to devise a system for encapsulating the mixture to prolong the residual life of treated mosquito nets. The efficacy of these mixtures between organophosphates and repellents therefore opens up a new pathway towards controlling pyrethroid-resistant malaria vectors. In the long term, the researchers plan to test their method on mosquitoes resistant to two other types of insecticide utilized against malaria transmission: organophosphates and carbamates. Institut de Recherche Pour le Développement |
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| Related Mosquitoes Current Events and Mosquitoes News Articles Active hearing process in mosquitoes A mathematical model has explained some of the remarkable features of mosquito hearing. In particular, the male can hear the faintest beats of the female's wings and yet is not deafened by loud noises. PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative shares strategy for developing 'next-generation' malaria vaccines Marking its tenth anniversary year, the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) today unveiled a new strategy that sets the stage for an aggressive push targeting the long-term goal of eliminating and eradicating malaria. Malaria is one of the world's deadliest infectious diseases, killing nearly 900,000 people a year, most of them children in sub-Saharan Africa. Media availability: The role of biomedical research in malaria eradication Although malaria has been controlled in many local and regional populations, the permanent elimination of malaria parasites throughout the world remains an elusive goal, and the disease continues to claim nearly one million lives each year. UC Davis researchers identify dominant chemical that attracts mosquitoes to humans Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have identified the dominant odor naturally produced in humans and birds that attracts the blood-feeding Culex mosquitoes, which transmit West Nile virus and other life-threatening diseases. UM School of Medicine researchers find extreme genetic variability in malaria parasite Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine Center for Vaccine Development (CVD) have charted the extreme genetic differences that occur over time in the most dangerous malaria parasite in the world. Research ensures 50 million vaccinated against deadly brain infection Research at the University of Liverpool has supported the vaccination of more than 50 million people against a zoonotic brain infection that affects thousands of children across Asia every year. Scientists discover how to send insects off the scent of crops Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)-funded research, published this week in Chemical Communication, describes how scientists have discovered molecules that could confuse insects' ability to detect plants by interfering with their sense of smell. This could reduce damage to crops by insect pests and contribute to food security. UH Manoa researcher examines possible implications of daily commute and mosquito-borne diseases University of Hawaii at Manoa assistant researcher Durrell Kapan recently published a paper, Man Bites Mosquito: Understanding the Contribution of Human Movement to Vector-Borne Disease Dynamics, in PLoS One. Published August 26, the paper highlights how daily commuting patterns in mega-cities may be a critically overlooked factor in understanding the resurgence of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever, infecting 50-100 million people annually. Decade-long US project to fight malaria builds thriving African mosquito net industry In a decade-long initiative to protect millions of families from malaria in sub-Saharan Africa, a U.S. government-funded project helped sell 50 million bed nets in seven countries, crafted a voucher system to allow the poor to receive them for free or partial cost, and created enough incentives for private companies that they invested $88 million to expand their businesses. New research confirms potential deadly nature of emerging new monkey malaria species in humans Researchers in Malaysia have identified key laboratory and clinical features of an emerging new form of malaria infection. More Mosquitoes Current Events and Mosquitoes News Articles |
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