Forget the bed nets: Mosquitoes harbour gut bacteria just like people do — and the bugs inside the bugs may hold a key to fighting malaria. Johns Hopkins University researchers in the U.S. have reported that beneficial bacteria living inside a mosquito’s gut can help do just that — two somewhat accidental discoveries that, if they pan out, might one day offer a novel way to protect against malaria. People, animals, even insects harbour a community of mostly healthy intestinal bacteria, what’s called the gut microbiome. Researchers have long known that some of those natural mosquito germs are capable of attacking malaria parasites, but the hurdle so far has been how to spread that protection to enough mosquitoes in the wild to make a difference. The researchers are condent of overcoming this with mosquito breeding and genetic manipulation. Mosquito experts not involved with the research called the work promising. “It’s a new avenue of fundamental mosquito biology — how the microbiome affects behaviour,” an expert said. The microscope image provided by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows genetically modied mosquito larvae glowing with fluorescent markers. * DR. YUEMEI DONG, JOHNS HOPKINS BLOOMBERG SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH VIA AP
