Drug which makes human blood 'lethal' to mosquitoes can reduce malaria spread, study shows

A drug which poisons mosquitoes when they feed on it could provide a powerful new avenue for tackling malaria.

Trials showed it reduced cases among children in rural Burkina Faso by 20 per cent.

Treating adults and children with the drug ivermectin helped to control the spread of malaria without causing harmful side-effects, the research led by a team at the Colorado State University found.

We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. From 15p €0.18 $0.18 USD 0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras.

They concluded that the new approach in combination with drugs to tackle the infections could slow down the creature's ability to resist the disease.

Currently, conventional insecticides and anti-malarials and hampering the eradication effort.

Shape Created with Sketch. Insects at risk of extinction Show all 12 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Insects at risk of extinction 1/12 Wasps Wasps are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 2/12 Dragonflies Dragonflies are of the order Odonata, one of the most at risk Getty 3/12 Bees Bees are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 4/12 Butterflies Butterflies are of the order Lepidoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 5/12 Ants Ants are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 6/12 Dung Beetles Getty 7/12 Caddisflies Caddisflies make up the order Trichoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 8/12 Stoneflies Stoneflies are of the order plecoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 9/12 Saw-Flies Saw-Flies are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 10/12 Moths Moths are of the order Lepidoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 11/12 Damselfly Damselflies are of the order Odonata, one of the most at risk Getty 12/12 Mayflies Mayflies are of the order Ephemeroptera, one of the most at risk Getty 1/12 Wasps Wasps are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 2/12 Dragonflies Dragonflies are of the order Odonata, one of the most at risk Getty 3/12 Bees Bees are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 4/12 Butterflies Butterflies are of the order Lepidoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 5/12 Ants Ants are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 6/12 Dung Beetles Getty 7/12 Caddisflies Caddisflies make up the order Trichoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 8/12 Stoneflies Stoneflies are of the order plecoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 9/12 Saw-Flies Saw-Flies are of the order Hymenoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 10/12 Moths Moths are of the order Lepidoptera, one of the most at risk Getty 11/12 Damselfly Damselflies are of the order Odonata, one of the most at risk Getty 12/12 Mayflies Mayflies are of the order Ephemeroptera, one of the most at risk Getty

“Ivermectin reduces new cases of malaria by making a person’s blood lethal to the mosquitoes who bite them, killing mosquitoes and therefore reducing the likelihood of infection of others,” said Dr Brian Foy, author of the study published in The Lancet.

Malaria’s life cycle is split between humans and its host mosquitos, the parasite is passed into the blood with a bite where it matures and multiplies and then waits to be transmitted on to the next mosquito to reproduce.

Ivermectin is already used to treat other parasites causing river blindness and scabies, but its effects on malaria transmission haven’t been studied in a large trial.

For the 18-week study researchers recruited 2,700 people, including 590 children, across eight villages with half in the treatment group receiving a dose of ivermectin every three weeks.

Regular visits from nurses were used to assess children for malaria symptoms and confirmed with a blood test and it found twice as many children in the treatment group had no malaria attacks.

In all there were an average of 2 malaria attacks per child in the treatment group compared to 2.49 in the control villages, without any additional harmful side effects.

If the findings are replicated in larger studies ivermectin’s unique way of working could help reduce the burden of malaria and control mosquito populations.

Professor Chris Drakeley from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who was not involved in the research, said that the looming resistance crisis means new approaches are “desperately needed”.

He said the current study is “proof of principle” that ivermectin can reduce episodes of malaria and showed a significant reduction in episodes with no safety issues.

“This study is the first of its kind to demonstrate effect at community level, highlighting a potential new avenue for malaria control,” he added.

We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view.

At The Independent, no one tells us what to write. That’s why, in an era of political lies and Brexit bias, more readers are turning to an independent source. Subscribe from just 15p a day for extra exclusives, events and ebooks – all with no ads.