Abstract
BackgroundThe decline in malaria cases and vectors is major milestone in fighting against malaria. The efficacy of MAGNet long-lasting insecticidal nets (MAGNet LLIN), an alpha-cypermethrin incorporated long-lasting net, with the target dose ± 25% of 5.8 g active ingredient (AI)/kg (4.35–7.25 g AI/kg) was evaluated in six veranda-trap experimental huts in Muheza, Tanzania against freely flying wild population of Anopheles funestus.MethodsMAGNet LLINs were tested against wild, free-flying, host-seeking An. funestus mosquitoes over a period of 6 weeks (total of 36 nights in the huts). MAGNet LLIN efficacy was determined in terms of mosquito mortality, blood-feeding inhibition, deterrence, induced exiting, personal protection, and insecticidal killing over 20 washes according to WHO standardized procedures. Efficacy was compared with reference to a WHOPES recommended approved LLINs (DuraNet) and to a net conventionally treated (CTN) treated with alpha-cypermethrin at WHO-recommended dose and washed to just before cut-off point. The efficacy of MAGNet was evaluated in experimental huts against wild, free-flying, pyrethroid-resistant An. funestus. The WHO-susceptibility method was used to detect resistance in wild Anopheles exposed to 0.75% permethrin. Mosquito mortality, blood-feeding inhibition and personal protection were compared between untreated nets and standard LLINs. Blood-feeding rates were recorded and compared between the 20 times washed; blood-feeding rates between 20 times washed MAGNet LLIN and 20 times washed WHOPES-approved piperonyl butoxide (PBO)/pyrethroid were not statistically different (p > 0.05).ResultsThe results have evidently shown that MAGNet LLIN provides similar blood-feeding inhibition, exophily, mortality, and deterrence to the standard approved LLIN, thus meeting the WHOPES criteria for blood feeding. The significantly high feeding inhibition and personal protection over pyrethroid-resistant An. funestus recorded by both unwashed and 20 times washed MAGNet compared to the unwashed DuraNet, the WHOPES-approved standard pyrethroid-only LLIN provides proof of MAGNet meeting Phase II WHOPES criteria for a LLIN.ConclusionBased on this study, MAGNet has been shown to have a promising impact on protection when 20 times washed against a highly resistant population of An. funestus.
Highlights
The decline in malaria cases and vectors is major milestone in fighting against malaria
African countries’ National Malaria Control Programmes (NMCP) have made substantial progress in malaria reduction through facilitation of free or subsidized long-lasting insecticidal bed net (LLIN) universal coverage campaigns with the aid of international donor agencies and governments for populations at malaria risk [2]
Susceptibility test of Anopheles funestus from untreated huts World Health Organization (WHO) susceptibility tests, on first filio generation (F1) adult An. funestus collected from the experimental huts with untreated nets and tested with permethrin papers, recorded mortality rates of 44%, indicating that An. funestus was resistant to pyrethroids (Table 1)
Summary
The decline in malaria cases and vectors is major milestone in fighting against malaria. Malaria vector populations across Africa have been reported to be declining [1, 3,4,5], malaria transmission is still high and concentrated in 10 countries, including Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Uganda, and United Republic of Tanzania) [1, 6]. The demand for LLINs has attracted the interest of several pesticide companies to produce new brands of LLINs [1, 12, 13] It is a pre-requisite for any new LLIN to be used by the community to pass a series of evaluation stages prior to its interim or full approval by WHOPES. WHO interim approval is given to a LLIN after it has successfully passed Phases I and II WHOPES evaluations, while the full approval is given after it has successfully passed Phase III evaluations [7,8,9,10, 12, 14]
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