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BOB HIRSHON (host):
Sweet revenge against mosquitoes. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.
When you feel like you’re being eaten alive by mosquitoes, it’s hard to imagine they might have a taste for anything for blood. But according to Agenor Mafra-Neto of ISCA Technologies, mosquitoes also have a sweet tooth. His team has exploited this weakness to distract them from biting people. They’ve developed a sweet bait that’s laced with an insecticide that kills only mosquitoes. They applied the bait to the eves of 500 houses in Tanzanian villages. As a result, 98% fewer mosquitoes entered people’s homes.
AGENOR MAFRA-NETO (ISCA Technologies):
That allows us to stop the transmission of malaria by taking these mosquitoes out of the population.
HIRSHON:
His team now has plans to test the formulation in more densely populated areas of Brazil and the United States. He presented the research at a meeting of the American Chemical Society. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.
Story by Susanne Bard