Trump signs executive order to speed up U.S. rocket launches
The U.S. government on Wednesday signed an executive order to ease federal regulations on commercial rocket launches, potentially benefiting SpaceX an...
Harvard researchers have discovered a new way to stop malaria transmission—by giving mosquitoes malaria drugs that kill the parasite inside them.
In a pioneering study, US scientists have identified a pair of drugs that can rid mosquitoes of the malaria parasite, offering a new front in the global fight against the disease that kills nearly 600,000 people annually, mostly children.
Traditionally, malaria prevention has focused on killing mosquitoes with insecticides, particularly via bed nets. But growing resistance to insecticides has weakened this approach. Now, researchers at Harvard University have shown that applying anti-malaria drugs to mosquito contact surfaces—such as bed nets—can successfully eliminate the parasite within the insect without needing to kill it.
Dr Alexandra Probst, lead researcher, said, “We haven’t really tried to kill the parasite inside the mosquito before—only the mosquito itself. But that approach is no longer cutting it.”
The drugs, when absorbed through the mosquitoes’ legs, were found to kill 100% of the parasites. Crucially, even if a mosquito survives contact with a drug-coated net, it will no longer be able to spread malaria.
Since each infected mosquito carries far fewer parasites than a human host, the likelihood of the parasite developing drug resistance is also reduced, the team said.
The treatment’s effectiveness has been demonstrated in laboratory settings, and field trials in Ethiopia are planned. If successful, dual-action bed nets coated with both insecticides and anti-malaria drugs could be widely deployed in the next six years.
Researchers hope the innovation will provide a longer-lasting and more effective solution in malaria-prone regions.
According to the World Health Organization's latest World malaria report, there were an estimated 263 million cases and 597 000 malaria deaths worldwide in 2023.
The world’s biggest dance music festival faces an unexpected setback as a fire destroys its main stage, prompting a last-minute response from organisers determined to keep the party alive in Boom, Belgium.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the Oaxaca region of Mexico on Saturday.
A resumption of Iraq’s Kurdish oil exports is not expected in the near term, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday, despite an announcement by Iraq’s federal government a day earlier stating that shipments would resume immediately.
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 56 kilometres east of Gorgan in northern Iran early Sunday morning, according to preliminary seismic data.
A scientist in the US revealed the pioneering device which works alongside artificial intelligence to monitor the body's vital signs and alert in case of danger.
Dubai has launched its first-ever 'Mallathon,' a month-long event turning shopping centres into indoor running tracks to offer residents a safe way to exercise during peak summer heat, that started 1 August.
Tech giant Google has announced a $1 billion investment to support Artificial Intelligence (AI) education and research at universities across the United States.
What shapes human nature? Why do some people act with compassion while others turn cruel? For centuries, thinkers — from philosophers and playwrights to theologians and psychologists — have grappled with these timeless questions, searching for what lies at the heart of good and evil.
A new skin cancer drug has been developed using a genetically engineered virus that targets and replicates only cancer cells. That's according to public broadcaster NHK who said that researchers in Japan found that 77.8% of those tested, improved.
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