Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://kvpr.org/post/using-bacteria-swat-malaria-inside-mosquitoes
Thu May 9, 2013
Using Bacteria To Swat Malaria Inside Mosquitoes
By Michaeleen Doucleff
It's a bit like probiotics for mosquitoes.
When scientists infect mosquitoes with a specific bacterium, the insects become resistant to the malaria parasite.
Sounds like an easy way to stamp out malaria, right? Just introduce the infected mosquitoes into an area and let the bugs take over the natural population.
But there's been one big hitch: The bacterium ? called Wolbachia ? doesn't stick around inside mosquitoes that carry malaria. So scientists would have to continually release flocks of treated mosquitoes to keep malaria down.
Now entomologists have overcome this obstacle, at least partially...
...The findings, reported Thursday in the journal Science, raise the possibility of one day controlling malaria with the bacteria...
Thu May 9, 2013
Using Bacteria To Swat Malaria Inside Mosquitoes
By Michaeleen Doucleff
It's a bit like probiotics for mosquitoes.
When scientists infect mosquitoes with a specific bacterium, the insects become resistant to the malaria parasite.
Sounds like an easy way to stamp out malaria, right? Just introduce the infected mosquitoes into an area and let the bugs take over the natural population.
But there's been one big hitch: The bacterium ? called Wolbachia ? doesn't stick around inside mosquitoes that carry malaria. So scientists would have to continually release flocks of treated mosquitoes to keep malaria down.
Now entomologists have overcome this obstacle, at least partially...
...The findings, reported Thursday in the journal Science, raise the possibility of one day controlling malaria with the bacteria...