Bacteria May Help Repel Mosquitoes

Aedes aegypti Mosquito Credit: James Gathany / CDC

Researchers have discovered that bacteria may play a role in how attractive a person is to mosquitoes. Our skin is home to hundreds of bacteria communities that are part of the normal microbial life present on the skin. These microbes help prevent other harmful microbes from inhabiting the area. Bacteria on the skin help to produce body odor that is specific to a person. It was discovered in a study conducted at Wageningen University in the Netherlands that this odor makes us more or less attractive to mosquitoes.

Findings from this study may have implications on the possible prevention of the spread of mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria. It was discovered that people with a higher abundance but lower diversity of bacteria on their skin were more attractive to the Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto mosquito. While the reasons for this are unclear, it has been suggested that individuals with more diverse bacteria communities may contain certain bacteria that produce a compound that makes the skin less attractive to this particular mosquito.

Learn more about this discovery:

• Microbial Communities On Skin Affect Humans' Attractiveness to Mosquitoes Science Daily