Close X
Wednesday, November 13, 2024
ADVT 
Health

Not all mosquitoes can transmit malaria

Darpan News Desk IANS, 28 Nov, 2014 12:46 PM
    A genetic study has revealed that certain species of mosquitoes have evolved to better transmit malaria than even some of their close cousins.
     
    The study may advance understanding about the biological differences between mosquitoes that transmit malaria, and ultimately, how species might be more precisely controlled to stop transmission.
     
    "With the availability of genome sequences from Anopheles mosquitoes of divergent lineages, we now have the opportunity to significantly improve our understanding of these important malaria vectors and develop new strategies to combat malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases," explained Zhijian Tu, professor at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
     
    Of about 450 different species of mosquitoes in the Anopheles genus, only about 60 can transmit the Plasmodium malaria parasite that is harmful to people.
     
    The team chose 16 mosquito species that are currently found in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America, but evolved from the same ancestor approximately 100 million years ago.
     
    Today, the 16 species have varying capabilities for transmitting malaria and adapting to new environments.
     
    The researchers sequenced their genomes to better understand the evolutionary science behind the differences.
     
    In a second related study, researchers found that the most dangerous species, Anopheles gambiae, is able to increase its transmission capabilities by swapping genes at the chromosome level.
     
    A genetic process called introgression, where genes from one species flow into another, plays a role in evolution, in this case by enhancing the capacity of mosquitoes to transmit the malaria parasite, the findings suggested.
     
    The research in the second paper was led by Matthew Hahn, professor at Indiana University.
     
    Both the studies appeared in the journal Science.

    MORE Health ARTICLES

    Unravelling the process of going to sleep

    Unravelling the process of going to sleep
    Sleeping is a gradual process and researchers have now developed a method to estimate the dynamic changes in brain activity and behaviour during the transition from wakefulness to sleep....

    Unravelling the process of going to sleep

    Male hormone does not hamper women's libido

    Male hormone does not hamper women's libido
      Failed relationships and emotional health threaten menopausal women's interest in sex more than levels of the male hormone testosterone and other...

    Male hormone does not hamper women's libido

    Now, ultrasound can penetrate bones, metals

    Now, ultrasound can penetrate bones, metals
    Materials like bones and metals, called aberrating layers, have physical characteristics that block or distort ultrasound's acoustic waves. ...

    Now, ultrasound can penetrate bones, metals

    South Asian Boys More Likely To Be Overweight

    South Asian Boys More Likely To Be Overweight
    South Asian boys are three times as likely to be overweight compared to their peers, says a Canada-based study led by an Indian-origin researcher.

    South Asian Boys More Likely To Be Overweight

    Women bosses more prone to depression

    Women bosses more prone to depression
    Job authority increases symptoms of depression among women but decreases them among men, a study from University of Texas at Austin finds....

    Women bosses more prone to depression

    How stem cells can speed up cardiac repair

    How stem cells can speed up cardiac repair
    Delivering stem cells directly into damaged heart muscle after a heart attack may help repair and regenerate injured tissue, according to a study.....

    How stem cells can speed up cardiac repair