Antibiotics may enhance mosquitoes’ ability to transmit malaria

“Ultimately, we hope that understanding any hidden effects of different antibiotics would mean we can combat the spread of malaria more effectively,” added study author George Christophides, PhD, also of Imperial College London.

“For example, if particular antibiotics make mosquitoes more able to transmit malaria, the use of these could be combined with supply of bed nets in order to reduce mosquito bites. Additionally, if a doctor prescribed such antibiotics to a malaria patient, they could combine this with a drug such as atovaquone that can both treat malaria and block its transmission.”