siRNA Larvicides for Control of Malaria Vector Mosquitoes

Molly Duman Scheel of Indiana University in the U.S. will perform a high-throughput screen to identify small interfering (si)RNAs that cause death when ingested by mosquito larvae as a method for reducing malaria transmission. Malaria vector mosquitoes are developing resistance to current larval insecticides, which are used to complement other control strategies such as insecticide-treated nets. They have shown that small RNAs combined with chitosan nanoparticles are ingested by mosquito larvae and can silence their gene targets. They will perform a screen of siRNAs targeting 1000 candidate larval essential genes in the malaria vector mosquito Anopheles gambiae at different developmental stages. Identified lethal siRNAs will be tested in multiple Anopheline species to target malaria spread by other species.