Despite the term, ‘mosquito bite’, mosquitoes don’t actually open their ravenous jaws to have a nibble on your ankles; it is the proboscis (the long pointed mouthpart) that pierces the skin with its razor sharp end, to get to the delicious blood supply beneath. The proboscis has two tubes, one to withdraw the blood and another to deposit saliva. The way in which we react to mozzie bites is dependent on this saliva and the reaction our body has to the proteins it contains.
Reactions to mosquito bites vary enormously; from mild irritation to potentially life threatening, with a contingent of people not reacting at all to them. This is where many people fall fowl of a common misconception; just because you cannot see or feel bites, does not mean you have not been bitten! This is ok in the UK, but as soon as these people leave the sanctuary of British shores they are even more at risk than the normal population, whose bites itch like crazy.
The best treatment currently available for the treatment of malaria is Artemisinin-based combination therapy or (ACT). Up until last year ACT had been working very well and it was predicted that malaria would be eradicated in Thailand and Cambodia in the next decade. However, since last year, resistance to ACT has become increasingly common along the Thai Cambodia border. This is a matter of great concern as there is no other anti-malaria treatment in the pipeline and so, if full Artemisinin resistance occurs, then malaria will spread unhindered. Artemisinin is derived from the plant Artemisia annua and has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries to treat malaria.
Artemisinin is derived from the plant Artemisia annua and has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries to treat malaria.