Mosquitos In Senegal Develop Resistance to Anti-Malarial Bed Netting
Some potential discouraging news in the worldwide battle against malaria: A report from Senegal shows that mosquitos can rapidly develop resistance to insecticide used to impregnate bed nets.
BBC News explains,
In this study researchers looked at one small village in the country and tracked the incidence of malaria both before and after the introduction of nets in 2008.
Within three weeks of their introduction the scientists found that the number of malaria attacks started to fall - incidence of the disease was found to be 13 times lower than before the nets were used.
The researchers also collected specimens of Anopheles gambiae, the mosquito species responsible for transmitting malaria to humans in Africa. Between 2007 and 2010 the proportion of the insects with a genetic resistance to one type of pesticide rose from 8% to 48%.
The open-ended and critical question is how this impacts long-term effectiveness in reducing malaria. Researchers not affiliated with the study rightly point out that it'll be important to look at whether this effect is specific to this area of Africa or is more broadly true as well.