Nixing Malaria: DNA segment provides parasite resistance
A section of the mosquito genome appears to give the insects a natural resistance to malaria, scientists report. Further analysis of that DNA might suggest new ways to prevent this deadly disease.
Most of the world’s 300 million to 500 million annual new cases of malaria arise in sub-Saharan Africa. In that part of the world, the disease is mainly transmitted by a species of mosquito known as Anopheles gambiae. A mosquito picks up the malaria parasite, typically a protozoan called Plasmodium falciparum, by biting people already infected with the disease.