The women changing the face of malaria fight

Malaria remains one of Uganda’s biggest public health challenges but behind the statistics are scientists working to stop the disease before it even reaches people. In this episode, we’re joined by Angella Nakamaanya, an Insectary Assistant Target Malaria under Uganda Virus Research Institute, who studies the very insects responsible for spreading malaria and how understanding them could help turn the tide against the disease.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Malaria remains one of Uganda's biggest public health challenges. In 2023 alone, the country recorded nearly 12 million malaria cases and about 2,793 deaths, while broader estimates suggest around 16,000 malaria deaths occur in Uganda each year, many among children and five and pregnant women. Malaria still accounts for about 30 to 40% of outpatient visits and then a quarter of hospital admissions in Uganda. Yet behind the fight against malarial are scientists working every day to stop the disease before it reaches the hospital by studying the mosquitoes that spread it and using data to guide smarter control strategies. As we celebrate women this month, March, we are highlighting the growing role of African women scientists who are shaping the future of malaria research and innovation. My name is Razia Uthman. Hello and welcome. And in this episode of Around Uganda, we are joined by an inspiring Ugandan researcher from the Target Malaria Initiative at Uganda Virus Research Institute. Angela Nakamania studies malaria mosquitoes in the laboratory to understand their biology and behavior to better guide malaria control strategies. Her work represents a powerful combination of science, technology, and women's leadership in the fight to end malaria in Uganda. Thank you so much, Angela, for joining us on this episode of Around Uganda. You work directly with malaria mosquitoes in the insectory. For someone hearing about this for the first time, what exactly does maintaining mosquito colonies involve and why is it important for malaria research? Maintaining mosquito colonies is a very adventurous task and very interesting.

SPEAKER_01 2:26

Deals with raising malaria transmitting mosquitoes in a controlled global environment over generations. This is based on the life cycle of the mosquito, which involves four stages, that is, the egg, lava, pupa, and adult. Within the insectory, we manage all those four stages on a daily basis. It also involves providing ambient conditions for mosquito survival, for example, temperature and humidity, routine feeding of the larvae and adults with appropriate food, providing blood mail for adult females so that they can produce more eggs to start up another generation. This activity allows scientists to have a stable and reliable hospital population for experiments such as testing new malaria control tools safely within containment before they are applied to the field.

SPEAKER_00 3:34

And your team has successfully maintained a laboratory colony of Anophilis Gambi for more than a hundred generations. Why is this achievement significant for malaria research in Uganda?

SPEAKER_01 3:50

We are so grateful that we have been able to raise this colony, the native colony, at Uganda Virus Research Institute, which shows that the colony is stable, healthy, and well adapted to robot reconditions. This colony can be used by researchers since it is reliable and consistent for use in long-term studies. It also strengthens Uganda's research capacity, allowing local scientists to conduct advanced studies on a mosquito without depending on external acidities.

SPEAKER_00 4:35

From your experience studying mosquito behavior, what are some surprising things people might not know about the mosquitoes that transmit malaria?

SPEAKER_01 4:45

Whenever you interact with malaria mosquitoes, it's really interesting. And there are so many interesting facts about these mosquitoes. One of them is that only female mosquitoes bite. You have to know from now that male mosquitoes don't bite. And females do bite because they need blood to obtain proteins required for egg development while male mosquitoes feed on sugar solutions. Sugar solutions can be fed on both sexes. Another interesting fact is that a female mosquito mates once in her lifetime and stores those spams and just the palma peka. Unlike the males, which mate as many times as possible. Can you also believe that these female mosquitoes can lay between 50 to 200 eggs per one blood feed? This is real. And that's why during certain seasons the densities are too high. And for your information, we should know that the entire life cycle from egg to adult can take about 8 to 14 days, depending on the environmental conditions.

SPEAKER_00 6:07

You previously worked with the vector control division supporting insecticide resistance monitoring. How serious is the challenge of insecticide resistance for malaria control today?

SPEAKER_01 6:20

Insecticide resistance is a growing challenge for malaria control programs in countries where malaria is prevalent worldwide. So as we tend to put all our efforts finding strategies on how to manage these mosquito vectors through chemical application that is by insecticide resistance and also treatment of the long-lasting insecticide in its. These mosquitoes over time they have ability to survive exposure to insecticides, especially those that are recommended by WHO. In this case, those are the pyrethroids. However, statistics also reveal more resistance in other insectside classes, including organotrollins and herbamids. This phenomenon harnesses the interventions that are in place, thus rendering them ineffective. Even though the problem is there, the good news is that scientists are also not treated. They continue to look for ways of how to manage this insecticide resistance. This is through continuous monitoring of the resistance. And others have also developed new tools and strategies to ensure that malaria control efforts remain effective.

SPEAKER_00 7:54

Your work focuses on stopping malaria, the mosquito stage, rather than the treatment stage. Why is targeting the vector such a powerful strategy in the malaria fight?

SPEAKER_01 8:06

It stops malaria before the parasite reaches people. In the cycle of malaria, there are two hosts involved: the intermediate host, and that is the vector itself. In this case, it's a mosquito, and the definitive host, where the parasite reaches sexual maturity and produces sexually.

SPEAKER_00 8:29

Your motivation is also personal. You experienced malaria many times growing up. How has that shaped the way you approach your work and your message to communities?

SPEAKER_01 8:41

Among the six children in our family, I was the sickliest. I used to hide my tablets, my medication, whenever they are given to me to swallow. It's not because I didn't want, but whenever I could, whenever I could think about the unpalatability, the side effects after taking those tablets. And by then it was clodoquin and quinine. Quinin was worse than I could undergo a lot of itching after taking it. That affected me most. And I resolved to escape from the medication rather than getting cured. I also experienced malaria as a mother. I could see my children lying helplessly whenever they are sick, battling with filters. I was also getting tired of sleeping on the bedside to take care of my children while in hospital. And whenever I think about all the expensive experiences I went through, I decided to also get interested in contributing to solutions that prevent others from going through the same. As a woman in science, this makes my work more than just a job. Instead, with a mission to ensure that no mother loses a child to malaria, a preventable disease.

SPEAKER_00 10:19

And that's it for this special edition of Around Uganda, a focus on the women who are changing the face of malaria fight.

SPEAKER_01 10:40

Through community participation, such as using mosquito nets, eliminating breeding sites, early malaria testing, to mention but a few. We can move closer to a future where malaria is no longer a threat to our children and families.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

Thank you so much, Angela Nakamania, Insectory Assistant at Target Malaria and the Uganda Virus Research Institute. And thanks to you for listening to the new vision podcast around Uganda with me, Rosia Islam.