Re: Spiders v Mosquito's
Funny you should start this thread Donkeyman, because only this very morning I was reading about a new and cheap Malaria test which they are saying could save countless lives.
I will quote part of the article:
Quote:
" A new test made from a strip of paper ha successfully detected Malaria in schoolchildren in Uganda, east Africa.
Malaria is a disease passed to humans by hungry female Anopeles Mosquitoes.
When the mosquito bites someone, parasites in it's saliva are injected into the person.
Identifying people with Malaria is one of the main challenges when fighting the disease. The best tests require fancy equipment, trained technicians, and they are expensive. This makes them difficult for people living in remote areas and poorer parts of the world, but this new test may offer a cheap alternative.
The test consists of a strip of waxy paper on which a drop of blood is placed. The paper has a special coating that prepares the blood for testing when the strip is folded.
It is then put on to another testing strip that detects the malaria parasite.
The entire thing is sealed and placed on a hot plate for 45 mins.
If malaria is detected, two red stripes show up on the testing strips. If not, only one red stripe will show.
In the first trial on a group of children the test correctly diagnosed malaria in 98% of cases.
Anti-malaria drugs kill the parasites when they enter the liver but the tablets are expensive.
Chemically treated mosquito nets, which cost just £2 each, could prevent half of all malaria cases worldwide."
Unquote.
* As an aside, I can react badly to some insect bites, it happens every summer and I have to go on Penicillin quite quickly.
I am paranoid about searching my bedroom for gnats before I go to bed, else the little blighters zoom down and get me during the night.
One bite last year made my arm swell from my wrist up to past my elbow!