Mosquitoes can be blinded by sprays containing cellulose in plant and tree pulp. Photo: File
Jerusalem: By adding nano-crystals to ‘cellulose’, a substance commonly found in plants, trees and weeds, spray and burn, you can ward off deadly mosquitoes and thus reduce the rate of mosquito bites by up to 80%.
Every year, mosquitoes sicken about 350 million people and according to conservative estimates, kill millions of people, especially in Africa, by contracting dangerous diseases like dengue, malaria, yellow fever and chikungunya.
Now based in Jerusalem, Daniel Voignac of the Hebrew University and his colleagues say that a spray, ointment or burn made from naturally occurring cellulose and nanoparticles can act as a natural camouflage for mosquitoes and prevent them from attacking. . When nanocrystals of sulfuric acid are passed through, they create a thin layer between the skin and mosquitoes that mosquitoes cannot sense humans.
Dr. Daniel experimentally sprayed it on one hand and left the other hand alone. Both hands were then placed for ten minutes inside a cage containing 15 female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes because the female bites and spreads the disease.
Experts found that the hand that was sprayed with cellulose nanocrystals (CNS) was bitten by 80 to 90 percent fewer mosquitoes than the other hand. This indicates that Yato uses a CNS ointment or spray that repels mosquitoes or that he is washing his hands from mosquitoes himself.
Chemical camouflage
Experts have termed this process as chemical camouflage which is an eco-friendly, effective and cost-effective way to protect us from mosquito bites. Thanks to this, the lives of thousands of people in poor countries can be saved.
However, it may still be several years before a product containing a CNS ointment or spray reaches the market. The research was published in PNAS Nexus.
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