An eco-friendly toxic cocktail could be a new weapon against malaria


Date:
October 12, 2021
Source:
Stockholm University
Summary:
Researchers have demonstrated that blood-seeking mosquitoes can
be directed to feed on a toxic plant-based solution, which in turn
kills them. This result could be one solution for the global problem
of diseases like malaria or dengue fever by specifically targeting
the mosquitoes while other species like bees won't be affected.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Mosquitoes can and do feed on HMBPP-supplemented beetroot juice. This is
the findings of a study at Stockholm University. HMBPP is a metabolite
which is produced by Malaria parasite, Plasmodium. The researchers have
shown that it is possible to mimic a blood meal so closely that mosquitoes naturally prefer this artificial solution by using HMBPP supplementation
as well as an addition of a protein/lipid mixture to any plant juice, particularly beetroot juice.


========================================================================== Mosquitoes can be tricked into feeding on the beetroot-based mix with
an addition of toxins. The researchers tested four different types of
toxins, containing capsaicin, savory oil, boric acid and fipronil sulfone (insecticide) and compared them to a control meal. The tendency to land
and ingest the insecticide cocktail was on a level that matched the
non-toxic meal, which in turn caused all the tested mosquitoes to die
within 100-350 minutes post feeding.

"This mixture, that we call pink juice, is a harmless, inert, eco-friendly solution, but it is naturally toxic for female mosquitos when ingested
by them, says Noushin Emami, associate professor, Department of Molecular Biosciences, Stockholm University.

"Altogether, we here provide a proof-of-concept for a specialised and
eco- friendly feeding trap that can be deployed where needed. We hope
to see it tested in a field setting and in combination with other vector control approaches.," says Noushin Emami.

Noushin Emami's group researches mosquito blood meal uptake and specific attractants and stimulants. The phagostimulant HMBPP is taking aim at eliminating mosquito borne diseases by modifying mosquito behaviours and
thus allowing to specifically control their populations. Being able to
target only blood seeking species of mosquitoes and at the same time not affecting other organisms is paramount in today's age of declining global biodiversity, pesticide health hazards and emerging pesticide resistance.

"There are a number of new, exciting, high tech approaches targeting
mosquitoes which are entering a large-scale testing but I believe that
there is a lot of potential in developing very simple, but highly
effective solutions based on simple molecules and using materials
which are not only affordable but also accessible to almost anyone. We
used beetroot in this study to demonstrate exactly this point.," says
Noushin Emami.

Background Over the past 1.5 years, the viral COVID-19 pandemic has been dominating the headlines worldwide. In 2015-2016, the Zika virus epidemic
had scientists, global health experts and the public worrying over its
spread. While the SARS- CoV-2 virus is airborne, the Zika virus spreads
through mosquito vectors -- and it is not the only pathogen that takes advantage of these flying, buzzing, biting insects for its' spread to new species and geographical locations. Other mosquito-borne pathogens are
the Chikungunya virus, dengue virus, the malaria (Plasmodium) parasite
and others. The latter two pathogens alone claim over 300 million cases
and 440,000 deaths annually.

In the study, mosquitoes spanning the An. coluzzii, An. arabiensis,
An. gambiae s.s., An. gambiae s.l., Ae. aegypti and the European Culex pipiens/torrentium species, were found dead.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Stockholm_University. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Viktoria E. Stromsky, Melika Hajkazemian, Elizabeth Vaisbourd,
Raimondas
Mozūraitis, S. Noushin Emami. Plasmodium metabolite HMBPP
stimulates feeding of main mosquito vectors on blood and artificial
toxic sources.

Communications Biology, 2021; 4 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02689-8 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211012130751.htm

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