Malaria is a life-threatening parasitic infection transmitted to humans through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. The resulting disease in humans can be devastating. In the absence of immunity or drug treatment, death can occur within hours of noticeable symptoms. Annually, 300 million to 500 million cases occur resulting in more than a million deaths. 90 % of these deaths occur in Africa, south of the Sahara and most of these victims are children under 5 years old. Pregnant women are also especially vulnerable.

There are a number of possible approaches to combat malaria, including mosquito control; limiting the chances for human exposure to the infected mosquito; prevention through prophylactic use of antimalarial drugs and hopefully one day trough use of vaccines.