Bacteria kill mosquitoes that spread malaria

Wolbachia is a bacterium that can cause many types of insects to be poisoned, including mosquitoes. However, this bacterium does not make Anopheles mosquitoes (mosquitoes that spread malaria to humans) naturally infected.

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg University School of Public Health have shown that artificial infections with different strains of Wolbachia can significantly reduce the level of human malaria parasites. The researchers also determined that the strain of Wolbachia will quickly kill mosquitoes after they suck blood.

Insect cells contain Wolbachia (Arrow-shaped).

According to them, Wolbachia is likely to be used as part of malaria control strategy if infection in Anopheles mosquitoes is stable. The study was published on May 19 in PLoS Pathogens .

" This is the first time a study has shown that Wolbachia infection can reduce the level of human malaria parasites in Anopheles mosquitoes ," said Associate Professor Jason Rasgon, lead author of the study. This said.

For this study, Rasgon and his colleagues conducted experiments on Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes by infecting them with two different Wolbachia strains (wMelPop and wAlbB). After infection, Wolbachia quickly spreads in the mosquito's body, causing its tissues and organs to become contaminated.

Wolbachia seems to have actively mobilized to be able to easily reproduce more bacteria in the mosquito's immune system. Both strains of Wolbachia are able to significantly inhibit the level of malaria parasites inside the mosquito. In particular, wMelPop strains kill mosquitoes within one day after mosquitoes suck blood.

" These experiments show that Wolbachia can be used in many ways to control malaria, either by blocking transmission or by killing an infected mosquito ," Rasgon added.

Worldwide, malaria poses a danger to more than 225 million people. Each year, the disease kills nearly 800,000 people, many of whom are children living in Africa.