Scientists want to use mosquito stomach bacteria to end malaria
Scientists want to use mosquito stomach bacteria to end malaria
Tags: Genetic biocontrol, Malaria, MosquitoesChia-Yu Chen & Shüné Oliver, Alliance for Science, 2024.
The months of September to May are an unfortunate season in South Africa: malaria season. The mosquito-borne disease is found in the north-eastern districts of KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces. There are fewer malaria cases in South Africa compared to other African countries. The World Health Organization estimated there were over 10 million cases of malaria in Mozambique in 2022. South Africa, that country’s neighbor, recorded 5,183 malaria cases between September 2022 and August 2023.
Its relatively low case numbers may be a result of South African health authorities’ excellent work in controlling the disease (control efforts began more than 120 years ago). The last major malaria outbreak in South Africa was in 2000, when more than 60,000 cases were recorded. Also notable was the 2017 outbreak, with 28,264 cases. This combination of control efforts and low numbers may mean that South Africans think malaria is not something they need to worry about unless they travel to provincial hotspots in the months of September to May. But it remains a disease of concern – not just within the country’s borders, but in the broader southern African region. Many researchers like ourselves are working towards eliminating or even, one day, totally eradicating the disease.
“Elimination” doesn’t mean there will be no malaria in the region at all. Instead, it would mean that local mosquitoes no longer spread the disease in South Africa. The reason that South Africa has not fully eliminated malaria is precisely because its local mosquito populations are still transmitting the disease. In fact, in 2023, about 17 percent of people who got sick from malaria had caught it in South Africa and not from travelling to neighboring African countries. Scientists are using and developing many different “weapons” in the fight against malaria. Our approach involves using mosquitoes’ own gut bacteria to prevent them from spreading malaria. This is a form of biocontrol, which involves the use of living organisms or natural substances to control harmful pests. The groundwork we’re laying with this ongoing research will, we believe, allow us and other scientists to create a powerful malaria-beating tool.
