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Malaria will be fought by male mosquitoes robbing the female of her ability to reproduce
Last reviewed: 30.06.2025
British scientists have proposed combating the spread of malaria using sterile male mosquitoes that deprive females of the ability to reproduce after mating. A report on the experiment by Imperial College London researchers has been published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The researchers' idea was based on the fact that female Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto mosquitoes (this species is one of the main carriers of malaria in Africa) mate only once in their lives, after which they lose interest in males and begin laying eggs.
Scientists have managed to breed male mosquitoes that mate with females just like normal males, but are unable to produce sperm. To do this, they used the RNA interference method, which suppressed the activity of the gene responsible for the development of the testes in male larvae.
In total, about 100 male sterile mosquitoes were obtained in this way. After mating with them, the females' behavior changed as usual: they began laying eggs, which, however, were not fertilized and did not develop.
As the authors of the study explain, the idea of using sterilized males to reduce insect populations is not new: this was previously used to combat the Tsetse fly and some insect pests. To make males sterile, their larvae were most often exposed to radiation. This made the insects less viable. The RNA interference method used by British scientists allows sterilized insects to remain healthy, which gives them the opportunity to compete more successfully for females.
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