Louisa Messenger (Environmental and Occupational Health) co-published a paper titled, "Ovary Dissection Is a Sensitive Measure of Sterility in Anopheles gambiae Exposed to the Insect Growth Regulator Pyriproxyfen," in the journal Insects.
Malaria is transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. An important control tool against malaria is insecticidal bed nets containing a pyrethroid insecticide and another active ingredient, such as pyriproxyfen (PPF), which sterilizes adult mosquitoes by disrupting egg development. To evaluate the impact of PPF-treated bed nets, there are two potential techniques available to measure mosquito sterility, including observing egg-laying rates and ovarial dissection. This study assessed if ovarial dissection could serve as an effective proxy for evaluating sterility in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. Researchers conclude that ovary dissection is a more sensitive and specific tool for measuring sterility in Anopheles mosquitoes exposed to PPF.
