Impregnated mesh to be added to arsenal in fight against mosquitoes
Researchers at the University of Pretoria offer an alternative to residual spraying, writes Sarah Wild
Malaria kills a child every five minutes, according to the World Health Organisation. This is particularly true in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for more than 90% of the world’s 400,000 annual malaria deaths. SA is a success story in malaria eradication, with the state footing the bill and the credit. It spent an average of $25m annually between 2009 and 2012 on malaria-control and plans to wipe out the disease from its territory by 2018. But climate change could see malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases creeping across SA’s borders as weather patterns shift and extend mosquitoes’ habitats and the disease’s infection vectors. Research out of the University of Pretoria hopes to add another weapon to the world’s malaria-fighting arsenal: a mesh impregnated with insecticides that kills mosquitoes on contact. The Department of Health’s malaria strategy involves spraying insecticides such as DDT inside the houses of people who live in high-risk areas. Malaria is endemic in parts...
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