GHS confirms the presence of a new malaria-transmitting vector

Ghana has confirmed Anopheles stephensi as a new malaria-transmitting mosquito vector for the first time, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) announced Saturday.

The GHS announced this in a press release, saying the mosquito species were identified during routine malaria surveillance nationwide.

The GHS described the Anopheles stephensi as a unique vector, which breeds in ponds, swamps, and all the traditional breeding sites of the common Anopheles. “But (it) survives in extremely high temperatures during the dry season when malaria transmission usually declines,” said the GHS, adding it has set up a task force to advise and coordinate its control in the country.

According to the World Health Organization, the Anopheles stephensi is originally native to parts of South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula and has been detected in five countries in Africa over the last decade.

Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority announced Thursday that it had granted approval for Oxford University’s R21 malaria vaccine to protect children aged 5-36 months against the deadly disease. Enditem