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Mosquito Trapping Bednets (T-Nets) for insecticide resistance management and malaria vector control

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), failure to prevent the emergence of new insecticide resistance or to manage existing resistance could lead to an increased disease burden, potentially reversing the substantial progress made in malaria control over the past decade.

Taking advantage of mosquito behavior around bednets—where approximately 70–90% of activity occurs at the roof—we have developed a two-compartment mosquito bednet, known as the trapping-net (T-Net), designed for mass mosquito capture and elimination. The T-Net consists of a lower compartment that provides a protected sleeping space for the user, and an upper compartment that serves as a trap for mosquitoes attempting to reach the sleeper. These two compartments are separated by the roof of the lower section.

When a person sleeps under the net, he emits a combination of olfactory and thermal cues that attract mosquitoes into the trap compartment through funnel-like openings. These openings allow mosquitoes to enter but prevent them from escaping. They later die from starvation or desiccation.

T-Nets are effective regardless of a mosquito’s resistance status. By capturing resistant mosquitoes—those that might otherwise survive contact with conventional LLINs and continue spreading resistance genes—T-LLINs help remove them from the reproductive cycle, thereby contributing to resistance management.

Importantly, manufacturing T-LLINs does not require the development of new insecticides with uncertain efficacy, potentially lowering production costs.

Taken together, these advantages suggest that T-LLINs could have a substantial impact on malaria transmission, adding a powerful new tool to the vector control arsenal. Our studies show that T-Nets are more effective than any other bednet currently on the market.

At a community-wide scale, mass trapping of both resistant and susceptible mosquitoes is expected to slow the spread of insecticide resistance genes and decrease malaria incidence and prevalence. Furthermore, their acceptability and adoption are likely to be higher than conventional nets, as users can see the trapped mosquitoes each morning, offering tangible proof of the net’s effectiveness.

Management of End-of-Life Insecticide-Treated Nets

Between 2006 and 2017, the mosquito net market increased fivefold, from 5.5 million units in 2004 to nearly 200 million in 2018. In January 2020, the Roll Back Malaria Partnership invited the global malaria community to celebrate the milestone of 2 billion insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) distributed worldwide since 2004. While ITNs have played a critical role in reducing malaria transmission and saving millions of lives, their growing environmental footprint is an emerging challenge that threatens both ecosystems and public health. In many settings, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where nets are widely used, worn-out nets are frequently diverted to other activities such as agriculture and/or fishing. These alternative uses, by their nature, inevitably release nets into the environment—leading to the accumulation of non-biodegradable materials and residual insecticides in soil and water systems. Compounding this problem is the lack of proper waste management systems for end-of-life nets, which allows these hazards to persist and spread.

The consequences of improper disposal can be considerable:

Plastic waste contamination
Nets are made from synthetic materials such as polyester and polyethylene, which can accumulate in landfills if not properly disposed of, contributing to plastic pollution. On average, 200 million nets are produced and distributed annually. With an average weight of 0.8 kg per ITN, this represents about 160,000 tons of plastic each year—a figure that is expected to rise as demand increases.
Insecticide contamination
The insecticides used to treat nets, while effective against mosquitoes, can leach into the environment as nets degrade or when they are repurposed for other uses (e.g., fishing, fencing vegetable gardens). This can negatively affect soil and water ecosystems. These insecticides are toxic and raise further environmental as well as human and animal health concerns.

The absence of a developed market for biodegradable nets, combined with the lack of policies for managing current end-of-life nets, contributes to significant environmental impacts and highlights the urgent need to develop end-of-life net management programs.

In this context, EVC proposes giving a second life to worn-out nets by recycling them into mosquito-proof window screens for malaria prevention.