Substandard Bed Nets And Malaria: Causes, Impact And Solutions
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$827,057.00
Summary
Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) are a cornerstone of malaria control. LLIN undergo strict testing overseen by WHO and are subject to inspections prior to delivery to recipient countries. Despite this, we found that LLINs delivered to Papua New Guinea (PNG) between 2013 and 2019 were ineffective against malaria mosquitoes. Concurrently we observed a massive rise in malaria in PNG. This study is aimed at understanding the causes and impact of substandard LLINs on the global malaria burden.
Spinosyns As Endectocides For Blocking Transmission Of Malaria And Other Mosquito-borne Diseases
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$758,299.00
Summary
Malaria is a disease caused by a parasite. It is transmitted by mosquitoes and kills 400,000 people annually. To prevent malaria we must stop transmission. We have discovered a natural substance that, if ingested, makes an animal's blood lethal to at least one type of mosquito. It also kills the parasite. We aim to determine if it kills other key mosquito types and how it kills the parasite. We expect this study will lead to a pill that stops transmission of malaria and other tropical diseases.
Spatial Analysis Of The An. Punctulatus Group Of Malaria Vectors In Australia And Papua New Guinea.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$66,430.00
Summary
Malaria has been eradicated from Australia but the country remains receptive to its reintroduction as the mosquitoes which transmit the disease are still present in the tropical north of the country. These are the Anopheles punctulatus group which are the major malaria vectors in the south west Pacific region. The Australian Army Malaria Institute conducted Operation Anopheles to collect these mosquitoes in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea by detailed surveys with the aid of helicopters a ....Malaria has been eradicated from Australia but the country remains receptive to its reintroduction as the mosquitoes which transmit the disease are still present in the tropical north of the country. These are the Anopheles punctulatus group which are the major malaria vectors in the south west Pacific region. The Australian Army Malaria Institute conducted Operation Anopheles to collect these mosquitoes in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea by detailed surveys with the aid of helicopters and 4-wheel-drive vehicles. These surveys, which were made for a month each year between 1984-1998, represent the most detailed dataset of mosquito locality records that have ever been produced. This project will utilise the computing power of modern Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software and computer induction techniques to spatially map the range of the different mosquitoes collected during Operation Anopheles to highlight environmental characteristics which limit their distribution and to permit control activities to accurately target the species which actually transmit malaria.Read moreRead less
Release The Sterile Males: A New Direction For Mosquito Population Control Technologies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,110,112.00
Summary
With over 40% of humans at risk from mosquito-borne disease, new environmentally friendly mosquito control tools are required. We’ve developed a novel sterile male population suppression technology – using neither radiation nor genetic modification – to produce sterile adult male mosquitoes from both male and female larvae. We will show that exposing mosquito larvae to specific RNA molecules can produce fit sterile males adult mosquitoes that can crash mosquito populations in large cage trials
Unravelling Plasmodium Vivax Transmission To Anopheles Mosquitoes: Role Of Naturally Acquired Transmission Blocking Immunity And Efficacy Of Novel Vaccine And Drug Candidates
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$431,000.00
Summary
This project is aimed at better understanding transmission of P. vivax, the world’s most widely spread malaria parasite. Using a newly established experimental platform that enables us to feed P. vivax infected blood to Anopheles farauti mosquitoes, we can start researching factors in human blood that determine P. vivax infection success, test new vaccine and drug candidates for their ability to block transmission and thus significantly advance science surrounding this neglected parasite.
Population Dynamics And Evolution Of Mosquitoes That Transmit Malaria
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$381,807.00
Summary
Population dynamics and evolutionary process are fundamental to mosquito-borne infectious diseases as evolutionary forces steer both mosquito and malaria parasite to evolve around obstacles in their natural development. Environmental and ecological factors also influence the relationship between mosquito, parasite and humans. Therefore control of mosquito borne disease depends on an innate understanding of the genetics, behavior and environment. Thus studies on mosquito population dynamics inclu ....Population dynamics and evolutionary process are fundamental to mosquito-borne infectious diseases as evolutionary forces steer both mosquito and malaria parasite to evolve around obstacles in their natural development. Environmental and ecological factors also influence the relationship between mosquito, parasite and humans. Therefore control of mosquito borne disease depends on an innate understanding of the genetics, behavior and environment. Thus studies on mosquito population dynamics including population densities, migration, population subdivisions and competition for resources will allow an understanding of these relationships. Island populations of malaria transmitting mosquitoes contain less genetic complexity (genetic variation in mosquito subpopulations) than mainland populations. Thus mosquito island populations may not contain the genetic capability of evolving around detrimental selection pressures such as the use of insecticides or predators. Armed with accurate knowledge of genetic complexity, biology and behavior of mosquito disease vector species, control measures can be accurately focused at specific populations (high disease transmission mosquito populations). This project we will identify specific populations of mosquitoes using their DNA to reveal genetic markers for specific behavior traits. Due to the smaller amount of genetic variations that island mosquito populations contain, and our aquired knowledge of their behavior and biology. We will design focused mosquito control strategies with knowledge that the mosquitoes will have a smaller chance of evolving around these control measures.Read moreRead less
Can Malaria Parastie Resistance To An Important Drug Spread?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$689,168.00
Summary
Malaria is a major global health issue. Drugs are a key weapon against the disease, but resistance eventually emerges and spreads, rendering a succession of drugs useless. We have preliminary evidence that resistance to a safe and cheap drug is unable to spread. We believe drug resistant parasites die when attempting to transmit from person to person via the mosquito vector. Inability to spread resistance would make this drug extremely valuable in the fight against malaria.
Dengue is the leading mosquito-borne virus causing morbidity and mortality in the tropics. North Queens land has a history of dengue outbreaks, with 5 outbreaks in the last 3 years. Queensland Health has developed a Dengue Fever Management Plan for north Queensland that has had considerable success in preventing small outbreaks of dengue from developing into large epidemics. The cornerstone of this plan is the application of residual insecticide inside premises near dengue cases to kill the mosq ....Dengue is the leading mosquito-borne virus causing morbidity and mortality in the tropics. North Queens land has a history of dengue outbreaks, with 5 outbreaks in the last 3 years. Queensland Health has developed a Dengue Fever Management Plan for north Queensland that has had considerable success in preventing small outbreaks of dengue from developing into large epidemics. The cornerstone of this plan is the application of residual insecticide inside premises near dengue cases to kill the mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti, before it can spread the virus. While this method is effective, it is labor intensive, requires the cooperation of homeowners who may find it intrusive and exposes nontarget insects and animals to insecticide. We propose to develop a lure and kill strategy to improve the efficacy of vector control while minimising the exposure of nontarget animals. Several chemicals have been identified as highly attractive to dengue mosquitoes. Among these are extracts from water infusions of grass that are highly attractive to egg-laying mosquitoes and emanations from human skin that attract host-seeking mosquitoes. We will develop traps incorporating a. mosquito attractants and b. a killing agent to selectively control Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. These will be collectively called lethal traps. This project will employ the following approach towards the development of a lure and kill strtaegy for dengue control a. determine which compounds are most attractive to north Queensland Ae. aegypti in a laboratory wind tunnel; b. confirm the attraction of these compounds using sticky traps in the field; c. conduct field trials of candidate lethal traps to determine the spacing and density of traps needed to control mosquitoes d. conduct a large field trial to examine the efficacy of the optimised lure and kill strategy. We will also conduct ecological studies on aging and the flight range of Ae. aegypti to enhance the development of the strategy.Read moreRead less