Scientists discover microbe that blocks malaria transmission

It completely prevents mosquitoes from being infected with malaria or transmitting the disease to humans, according to the team at Kenya's International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology. Once at least 40 per cent of a regional mosquito population is carrying the microbe, malaria infection rates should start to fall. Prevention methods are still crude, relying on spraying insecticide and distributing bed nets to affected areas. More work is needed to understand how the infection spreads, but because the microbe is already circulating among mosquitoes in Kenya it should be straightforward to increase its prevalence.