Which Animal Is the Deadliest to Humans?

MedEvidence Articles

In today's episode, we dive into the surprisingly nuanced world of mosquitoes, revealing their role as the deadliest animal on Earth due to their capacity as disease vectors. While shark attacks capture headlines, mosquitoes quietly claim up to a million lives annually by transmitting diseases like malaria, dengue, and yellow fever. We explore the mechanics of how mosquitoes locate their hosts and cover various attractants and deterrents, debunking myths around natural repellents while highlighting the limited effectiveness of common strategies like dietary changes. Ultimately, perhaps the most promising avenue to mitigate their deadly impact lies in advancing medical research to combat the diseases they spread rather than attempting to avoid their bites.
Participate in clinical research!
www.ENCOREdocs.com

Share with a friend. Rate, Review, and Subscribe to the ENCORE Research Group podcast to be notified when new episodes are released.
Follow us on Social Media:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn
Tiktok
For more great content, including discussions by physicians and clinical research experts, check out the MedEvidence podcast. www.MedEvidence.com
Thank you for listening!
References:
Associated Press. (September 9, 2020). Thick clouds of mosquitoes kill livestock after hurricane. https://apnews.com/article/horses-animals-insects-storms-hurricane-laura-fa0d05b046357864ad2f4bb952ff2e3e
CDC Global Health Center. (April 8, 2024). Fighting the world’s deadliest animal. https://www.cdc.gov/global-health/impact/fighting-the-worlds-deadliest-animal.html
Brown, J. E. et al. (2014). Human impacts have shaped historical and recent evolution in Aedes aegypti, the dengue and yellow fever mosquito. https://academic.oup.com/evolut/article/68/2/514/6852391
Ellwanger, J. H. et al. (2021). Variability in human attractiveness to mosquitoes. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8906108/
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (September 25, 2023). Insect repellents: DEET. https://www.epa.gov/insect-repellents/deet
Giraldo, D. et al. (2023). Human scent guides mosquito thermotaxis and host selection under naturalistic conditions. Current Biology, 33(12), 2367-2382. https://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(23)00532-8
Peach, D. A., & Gries, G. (2020). Mosquito phytophagy–sources exploited, ecological function, and evolutionary transition to haematophagy. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata, 168(2), 120-136. https://doi.org/10.1111/eea.12852
Potter, C. J. (2014). Stop the biting: targeting a mosquito’s sense of smell. Cell, 156(5), 878-881.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867414001585
Raji, J. I., & DeGennaro, M. (2017). Genetic analysis of mosquito detection of humans. Current opinion in insect science, 20, 34-38. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214574517300342
Shen, H. H. (2017). How do mosquitoes smell us? The answers could help eradicate disease. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114(9), 2096-2098. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1701738114
Tauxe, G. M.et al. (2013). Targeting a dual detector of skin and CO2 to modify mosquito host seeking. Cell, 155(6), 1365-1379. https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(13)01426-8
Van Breugel, F. et al. (2015). Mosquitoes use vision to associate odor plumes with thermal targets. Current Biology, 25(16), 2123-2129.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096098221500740X