Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute have for the first time managed to engineer the mosquito immune system to block the transmission of malaria.
The millions of dollars pumped into malaria research by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have paid off: the team's developed a vaccine that halves the risk of the disease in young children - its most frequent victims.
Two strains of the mosquito responsible for most malaria transmission in Africa are evolving into different species, meaning that techniques to control them may work on one type but not the other.
Your reporter once had to explain to a toddler why it was vital that she take malaria pills on holiday. The child nodded sagely and asked whether she was supposed to throw the pills at the mosquitoes.
