What’s being called a “super mosquito” because of its resistance to Malaria insecticide has been discovered.
TIME noted that a new study has shown interbreeding two mosquitos species in Mali has created a super bug.
Data from the study was published earlier this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"It's 'super' with respect to its ability to survive exposure to the insecticides on treated bed nets," said lead researcher and medical entomologist Gregory Lanzaro of the University of California Davis.
“What we provide in this new paper is an example of one unusual mechanism that has promoted the rapid evolution of insecticide resistance in one of the major malaria mosquito species,” he added.
Malaria insecticides are used to treat bed nets and are vital in preventing the spread of the disease in humans. The World Health Organization said that Malaria deaths are down by 47 percent since 2000 and the nets are a key part of that, which is why this new information is disconcerting.
Malaria is a parasitic disease and can be fatal. The symptoms associated with it include high fevers, shaking and chills.