Residents were supposed to get a respite from the ankle-nipping mosquitoes that fueled a recent surge in dengue fever in Los Angeles County. Typically, the invasive mosquitoes — called Aedes aegypti — essentially disappear from winter until early May in the region. Instead, complaints to local agencies tasked with controlling the pests spiked recently. Share … Read more
New research on avian malaria, which has decimated Hawaii’s beloved birds, explains how non-native birds play a key role in transmission and contribute to the widespread distribution of the disease. This disease threatens many native species that are integral to Hawaii’s identity and its unique and fragile ecosystems. Avian malaria, caused by a microscopic parasite … Read more
A new study, jointly led by Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the Centre for Research in Infectious Diseases (CRID) in Cameroon, has detected a DNA marker in a gene encoding for a key enzyme, known as cytochrome P450, that helps mosquitoes to break down and survive exposure to pyrethroids, the main insecticides used for … Read more
Climate change could cause more than 500,000 additional malaria deaths in Africa by 2050 Extreme weather could generate over 100 million new cases in 25 years under current emissions paths Floods and cyclones, not temperature shifts, account for most of the projected increase Climate change could lead to more than 500,000 … Read more
In a forested area along the Brazilian coastline, mosquitoes that previously fed on a variety of hosts are increasingly turning to human blood. Scientists say the destruction of the ecosystem’s biodiversity is forcing mosquitoes to find new sources to quench their thirst. The strong preference for humans could lead to the transmission of more viral … Read more
Mosquitoes are more than just a summer nuisance; they pose a significant global health challenge, killing over 700,000 people every year. Mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue, Zika, and chikungunya were once considered distant threats, but climate change and rapid urbanisation are enabling mosquitoes to spread to new areas, including parts of Europe. A challenge of … Read more
The “catastrophic” freeze on US funding for malaria has halted prevention programmes across Africa and also threatens to stall advances in genomic research, says Jane Carlton, director of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute. The US President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) is one of numerous USAID-supported programmes to see its funding terminated under US President Donald Trump’s sweeping reforms this … Read more
Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine have discovered how a parasite that causes malaria when transmitted through a mosquito bite can hide from the body’s immune system, sometimes for years. It turns out that the parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, can shut down a key set of genes, rendering itself “immunologically invisible.” “This finding provides another piece of … Read more
Despite decades of efforts focused on mosquito eradication, drug therapies, and vaccines, malaria remains hard to beat, especially in Africa. The World Health Organization’s World Malaria Report 2024 indicates that 11 African countries bear about two thirds of the world’s malaria burden. A major factor in this persistence is the malaria parasite’s genetic adaptability, according to … Read more
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