Mosquitoes Should Receive Malaria Drugs to Halt Disease Transmission, Researchers Propose

According to researchers in the US, mosquitoes infected with malaria should be treated with medication to eliminate the parasites, thereby stopping them from spreading the disease. Malaria parasites take a heavy toll, claiming nearly 600,000 lives annually, predominantly among children, and are transmitted via female mosquitoes that feed on blood.

Current strategies focus on exterminating mosquitoes using insecticides rather than treating them for malaria. However, a research team at Harvard University has identified a combination of drugs that can effectively clear malaria from mosquitoes when the drugs are absorbed through their legs. The long-term goal here is to coat bed nets with this drug combo.

Using bed nets has proven to be one of the most effective methods to prevent malaria since the primary mosquitoes responsible for its spread are active during the night. Additionally, vaccines for children in high-risk malaria zones are also suggested. Bed nets serve a dual purpose: they act as a physical barrier and are treated with insecticides that kill mosquitoes that land on them.

That said, many regions are facing a growing issue with mosquitoes developing resistance to insecticides, rendering these chemicals less effective than they once were. “We haven’t really tried to directly kill parasites in the mosquito before this, because we were just killing the mosquito,” explains Dr. Alexandra Probst from Harvard. But, she admits, that method “is no longer cutting it.”

The researchers examined the DNA of the malaria parasites to identify vulnerable points during their time in mosquitoes. They sifted through a large selection of potential drugs and narrowed it down to 22 contenders. These were tested on female mosquitoes that consumed blood contaminated with malaria. In their publication in Nature, the scientists highlight two exceptionally effective medications that eliminated 100% of the parasites.

The drugs were tested on materials similar to bed nets. Dr. Probst notes, “Even if that mosquito survives contact with the bed net, the parasites within are killed and so it’s still not transmitting malaria.” She describes this as an “exciting approach” since it represents a completely new method of targeting the mosquitoes themselves.

She also points out that the malaria parasite is less prone to develop resistance against these drugs because each infected person harbors billions of parasites, while a mosquito contains fewer than five. The effectiveness of the drugs lasts for about a year when applied to the nets, making it a potentially cost-effective and enduring alternative to traditional insecticides.

This strategy has shown promise in laboratory tests, and the next phase is set to take place in Ethiopia to assess whether these anti-malarial bed nets work effectively in real-world conditions. However, it could take at least six years to complete all studies to determine the approach’s overall viability.

The ultimate vision is to create bed nets treated with both anti-malarial drugs and insecticides, so that if one method fails, the other could still provide protection.